The frustrating side of Cane
Skipper explains why coach finds him a little annoying
All Blacks coach Ian Foster revealed his new captain Sam Cane can be “frustrating” to deal with — and the Chiefs loose forward says he already knew Foster could find him a bit annoying. After appointing Cane this week, Foster said: “He’s really comfortable in his own skin about who he is and not afraid to challenge and question. He likes clarity. If things are not clear, he will ask a lot of questions. It’s a bit frustrating at times but that’s the beauty of him as a captain.”
When asked by Newstalk ZB’s Martin Devlin about Foster’s suggestion he could be annoying, Cane said: “I know what he means because he’s said it to me in the past. I like to have a good understanding of what we’re doing and the why behind it. Once I understand that, I can help drive it — that’s what he’s alluding to there.”
But Cane also revealed it’s not his style to be so questioning of referees.
“Early on in my career, particularly the first few years as captain, I worked with a couple of referees [about] the right questions to ask, when to shut up and leave them alone, how they think during a game.
“They are under pressure as well. Sometimes I find less is better with referees, and they’ve told me that, too. It’s a bit of a philosophy I have unless it is something I feel strongly about, or I feel it is the right time. I won’t be in the referee’s ear all game — that works for me as well, to focus on your own team and your own play.”
Cane said he had learned how to concentrate on his own game and use breaks in play to take care of team matters. A captain needed to put a lot of trust in players around him, particularly the halfback and first five-eighth.
He had built strong bonds over a decade with some fellow All Backs, from their junior days, and also has a good relationship with Foster — arguing Foster’s eight years in a successful All Blacks camp meant he was perfectly placed to know what worked and what he wanted to tweak.
“Just because we didn’t get the job done last year, there are still a lot of good things in place, he’s able to identify the tweaks,” Cane said.
He described Foster as “tactically up with the best” and “good at narrowing down the things to get right”.
“He’s a good people person, good values, cares about his players; he’ll do a fantastic job.”
Cane also spoke about the disappointment of the All Blacks’ World Cup exit — and how he coped with being benched for the semifinal defeat against England.
“Steve [Hansen] called me into his room [before the team announcement] and just gave me his reasoning, he was open and honest . . . he wanted to target the English lineout offensively, to stop the ball at the source.
“I was hugely disappointed because you want to be involved in the big games.
“I knew I would be involved but not to the same capacity. It was tough, but a good test for my character, to suck it up and get on with it and do my best when I got on the field.”
He could be back on the field shortly with the Chiefs in Super Rugby Aotearoa, and says he is looking forward to getting back to playing his usual physical style of rugby.
“I remember talking to [former All Blacks loose forward] Rodney So’oialo and one of the things he missed most about rugby was the contact and collision. Loose forwards and the tight five will know what he means — it really resonated, after a while you do miss that.
“No doubt you are sore after them but it’s amazing how quickly your body can adjust — a few weeks of that and we’ll be back into it.
“Sometimes when you haven’t played for a while and you’re watching a game, you think ‘geez, that’s physical, holy smoke’, but then you’re out there the next day doing it yourself.
“These days, everyone’s got the players’ best interests at heart. It’s going to be a minimum of three weeks training before the first game.
“There’s a lot of trust put in medical staff, strength and conditioning coaches — it’s just about getting those collisions in. It’s what we’ve been training for and keeping fit for.”
And Cane still believes he could be walking the All Blacks out on to the field in 2020.
“All the signs are pretty positive . . . most likely Australia, potentially Ireland could open up as well, South Africa could get across. That would be awesome.”
I like to have a good understanding of what we’re doing and the why behind it. Once I understand that, I can help drive it. All Blacks captain Sam Cane