Gold or black: Clarke’s conundrum
Star wing Caleb Clarke is torn between going to the Tokyo Olympics or sticking with the 15-man game. David Long reports.
Caleb Clarke says he’ll use next week to decide whether he’ll go to the Olympics or play Super Rugby trans-Tasman for the Blues and then for the All Blacks.
Super Rugby Aotearoa finishes off for the Blues tonight, when they take on the Chiefs at Eden Park.
The team will then have week off, before preparing for their first game of the inaugural Super Rugby trans-Tasman competition.
But the 22-year-old Clarke says he’ll spend the next few days deciding whether he’ll chase a gold medal at the Tokyo Games, or spend the rest of the season in the 15-man game. ‘‘I’ll just take this week [against the Chiefs] first and then have a look and see what’s after,’’ Clarke told Stuff.
‘‘I’ve got a week in between, so that’s the week when I’ll make that decision on whether to go or stay.’’
Clarke says right now he doesn’t know which way he’s leaning, but it will be one that Blues coach Leon MacDonald, All Blacks coach Ian Foster and sevens coach Clark Laidlaw will be anxiously waiting on. ‘‘I’m talking to both parties at the moment,’’ Clarke said.
‘‘Personally I feel like I haven’t really got to my full potential – it’s been a lot harder this year, trying to get into these games.
‘‘So that’s one side of it, but on the other, the Olympics is a once in a lifetime opportunity, so we’ll see how we go.’’
If Clarke chose the Olympic route, he would have to start training with the rest of the New Zealand sevens team, which hasn’t played a tournament since last March, because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Clarke would need time to relearn the intricacies of sevens and also change his body shape, losing muscle and becoming leaner, so there’s no chance of Clarke being able to play for the Blues in Super Rugby trans-Tasman.
‘‘It’s either one or the other. So we’ll see how we go, but I think Japan just went into lockdown again, so it will be interesting to see what their Covid situation looks like in a month’s time, to see what happens in the end.’’
By playing in the Olympics, Clarke would miss the yet to be confirmed two tests against Italy and against Fiji, but he could be back in black for the Rugby Championships if it begins in September, which has been suggested. But what could lean Clarke towards choosing to stick with the 15-man game is that he hasn’t been happy with how he’s played this season and he may feel his game would benefit from focussing on making improvements.
‘‘I came into this year with a goal to be working off the ball and getting the ball a lot,’’ he said. ‘‘Whereas I’ve been working off the ball, but every time I’m running off my wing, I can hear everyone talking, like ‘Caleb’s coming’.
‘‘Last weekend I could hear Sam Whitelock say that every time I tried to sneak around the rucks.
‘‘Stuff like that is frustrating, but at the same time it is quite cool that I’m being so heavily marked. But it’s been one of those years where I’ve wanted to do tackle busting runs and get over the gain line, but it’s been tougher not getting the ball.’’
There was plenty of hype around Clarke last year after his performance against the Wallabies at Eden Park last October.
But as Clarke himself points out, this season hasn’t gone as well as he wanted with his game. But Clarke is smart enough to realise he should measure himself on his own expectations and not by what other people are saying about him.
‘‘I was happy against the Highlanders, but really disappointed in the Crusaders game, where I felt that my own personal standards weren’t really up there. I got stripped by Sevu (Reece) and I’m always wanting to run the ball as hard as I can.
‘‘That was frustrating, because it was around the 30-minute mark and I hadn’t touched the ball the whole first half.
‘‘So my first occasion with the ball was getting stripped and stuff like that I never want to do, because I want to have high standards in the game and expect a lot from myself.
‘‘There were a few tears after that game!’’
‘‘I feel like I haven’t really got to my full potential – it’s been a lot harder this year.’’
Caleb Clarke