Smith ready for leading role

Like pretty much everything Ben Smith does on a rugby field, his ascension to the All Blacks captaincy will be handled with a minimum of fuss and maximum of efficiency.

Smith will become the 68th All Blacks test captain when he leads the New Zealanders out for their season-opening clash against Samoa at Eden Park on Friday night, filling the leadership position on a temporary basis with regular skipper Kieran Read requiring an extra week to recover fully from his fractured thumb.

‘‘I’m looking forward to the challenge and I’m excited about doing that role,’’ said Smith on Thursday as he reflected on the latest rise in his status among the world champions. ‘‘Leading the team out is going to be a massive honour for myself and my family.

‘‘I just want to get out there and play well. That’s my main job.’’

That’s almost a given when it comes to Smith who will play his 61st test from the fullback position on Friday night. Since becoming an All Black regular in 2012, his standards have remained unerringly high as he has carved out a gilt-edged reputation as arguably the world’s best No 15, and certainly its most consistent.

‘‘He doesn’t talk much, but when he does everyone listens,’’ said long-time national teammate Israel Dagg. ‘‘He’s got a lot of respect from the guys. But the best thing is I don’t think I’ve ever seen him play a bad game. If he leads well, it’s with his actions.’’

Dagg drew a parallel in leadership styles with Richie McCaw and Smith, who is well ensconced in the role with the Highlanders, didn’t mind admitting he has borrowed a lot from the great man’s way of going about the job.

‘‘A big thing that stood out for me was he was consistent in what he did,’’ said Smith of McCaw’s captaincy. ‘‘He led a lot in his actions but he was always calm and had a lot of trust in the group.’’

Adds Sam Whitelock: ‘‘Bender is that guy that just loves the team, loves being around the environment. He gets out there and plays the way he always does. He’s that guy you pick energy up off.

‘‘The boys thrive off him at the back chatting up and keeping everyone on task. When he’s doing that, he’s playing great rugby, and whenever the skipper is playing good rugby it’s easy for him to lead.’’ But Smith will also be his own man. That’s important, he reckons.

‘‘I’ll be a wee bit different but probably take a lot out of people that have done it before me. I’m getting a wee bit older now so I’ve seen a few captains; how they operate and go about their work. ’’

And Smith gave short shrift to the suggestion that it was harder captaining a rugby team from fullback, so removed from much of the action. Quite the opposite, he maintains.

‘‘I’ve learnt over the past view years fullback is a [great] vantage point. We probably see a wee bit more from back there. I see it as an advantage that you can impact a game by coming forward.

‘‘If you need to have a chat with the ref it’s from a viewpoint where you can see a lot of the game.’’

Smith says he’s learning fast when it comes to the skipper’s necessary interaction with the referee. Much of it, like the game itself, is a question of timing, he says. ‘‘Referees have times when they want to be approached and times when they don’t. So it’s finding the right times to go to them.’’

Smith almost never takes a wrong option. Don’t expect him to start now.