All Blacks captain Sam Cane set for injury return in star-studded match
Sam Cane’s first Bay of Plenty outing in four years will headline a short-lived throwback as the freshly-named All Blacks return to their provincial roots this week.
With the All Blacks schedule not due to be confirmed until later this week Ian Foster’s 35-man squad departed Wellington to link with their respective Mitre 10 Cup teams.
While crowds cannot attend the opening weekend, the All Blacks are available for the first two rounds of the provincial season which gets underway on Friday night in Albany.
The presence of New Zealand’s elite athletes scattered throughout the country’s 14 unions will end a drought for many players.
All Blacks captain Cane last played for Bay of Plenty in 2016 after tearing his hamstring against Argentina, while Beauden Barrett last pulled on Taranaki’s amber and black in 2012.
After almost one month on the sidelines, which included sitting out the North South fixture, Cane has sufficiently recovered from the nasty head knock he took when colliding with Jordie Barrett’s hip while playing for the Chiefs against the Hurricanes in Wellington.
Reporoa-raised Cane is now relishing the chance to return with Bay of Plenty against the Barrett brothers in Inglewood on Sunday.
“The first couple of weeks after the knock were up and down with a few little headaches and getting a bit weary towards the end of the day but I followed the protocols and rested until I was feeling really good,” Cane said at NZ Rugby headquarters on Sunday.
“I’ve eased into some exercise the last few weeks and really ramped up this last week or so, all the while feeling really good so I hope to pull on that Bay jersey next week.
“They’ve been training away the last few weeks so I won’t have to worry about the leadership side of things, I’ll just enjoy being part of the team. Bay of Plenty had an awesome year last year and they’re in the top flight this year so it’ll be awesome to be involved with them again.
After missing out on selection for the #NorthvSouth game, Alex Hodgman thought it was an indication he wouldn't be named in the first All Blacks squad of the year.https://t.co/oiqbW4bzh2
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) September 6, 2020
“After debuting for Bay of Plenty as an 18-year-old and looking at some of the old boys on the wall I was hoping to get to 50 games but I’m stranded in the low 20s at the moment because of the way professional rugby has evolved over that time. It will be great to get back – I’ll have to pull my old blazer out the cupboard and dust it out.
“At the moment it looks like we’ll definitely be playing two games. That’s something all the All Blacks can look forward to. It’s been a long time since we’ve had so many involved in Mitre 10 Cup so there’ll be a buzz around that and the provinces will be excited.
“It’s a great thing to do, mix with some really young guys out of club rugby. It’s a real broad mix of players. Everyone has that pride associated with their province. A lot of the boys play for the team they grew up supporting so that’s cool, too.”
As with everyone, it’s been a strange and at times frustrating season for Cane. Foster asked him to be All Blacks skipper back in February and he then had to keep his anointment quiet until the official announcement in May.
Four months on, Cane is yet to lead the All Blacks into a test.
“The announcement of captain was early on in the piece but no one could predict that test matches were going to be so far away. There’s always a buzz and anticipation the day the All Black team gets announced and today was no different. You can think back and appreciate what it was like to be named the first time.
“Watching the new boys light it up during Super Rugby it was exciting to get us all sitting in a room this morning and share that buzz. Hopefully we don’t have to wait too much longer to get together as a team.
“Logistically it makes sense that we play Aussie. Over the last month or so I’m a bit over guessing what could happen because it changes all the time so we’ll just wait and see.”
Comments on RugbyPass
I wouldn’t spend the time on Nawaqanitawase! No point in having him filling in a jersey when he’s committed to leave Union. Give the jersey to a young prospect who will be here in the future.
4 Go to commentsIt was a pleasure to watch those guys playing with such confidence. That trio can all be infuriating for different reasons and I can see why Jones might have decided against them. No way to justify leaving Ikitau out though. Jorgensen and him were both scheduled to return at the same time. Only one of them plays for Randwick and has a dad who is great mates with the national coach though.
53 Go to commentsBrayden Iose and Peter Lakai are very exciting Super Rugby players but are too short and too light to ever be a Test 8 vs South Africa, France, Ireland, and England, Lakai could potentially be a Test player at 7 if he is allowed to focus on 7 for Hurricanes.
5 Go to commentsPencils “Thomas du Toit” into possible 2027 Bok squad.
1 Go to commentsDon’t see why Harrison makes the bench. Jones can play at 10 if needed, and there is a good case for starting her there to begin with if testing combinations. That would leave room for Sing on the bench
1 Go to commentsWhat a load of old bull!
1 Go to commentsOf the rugby I’ve born witness to in my lifetime - 1990 to date - I recognize great players throughout those years. But I have no doubt the game and the players are on average better today. So I doubt going back further is going to prove me wrong. The technical components of the game, set pieces, scrums, kicks, kicks at goal. And in general tactics employed are far more efficient, accurate and polished. Professional athletes that have invested countless hours on being accurate. There is one nation though that may be fairly competitive in any era - and that for me is the all blacks. And New Zealand players in general. NZ produces startling athletes who have fantastic ball skills. And then the odd phenomenon like Brooke. Lomu. Mcaw. Carter. Better than comparing players and teams across eras - I’ve often had this thought - that it would be very interesting to have a version of the game that is closer to its original form. What would the game look like today if the rules were rolled back. Not rules that promote safety obviously - but rules like: - a try being worth 1 point and conversion 2 points. Hence the term “try”. Earning a try at goals. Would we see more attacking play? - no lifting in the lineouts. - rucks and break down laws in general. They looked like wrestling matches in bygone eras. I wonder what a game applying 1995 rules would look like with modern players. It may be a daft exercise, but it would make for an interesting spectacle celebrating “purer” forms of the game that roll back the rules dramatically by a few versions. Would we come to learn that some of the rules/combinations of the rules we see today have actually made the game less attractive? I’d love to see an exhibition match like that.
29 Go to commentsIrish Rugby CEO be texting Andy Farrell “Andy, i found our next Kiwi Irishman”
5 Go to commentsI certainly don’t miss drinking beers at 8am in the morning watching rugby games being played in NZ.
1 Go to commentsThis looks like a damage limitation exercise for Wales, keeping back some of their more effective players for the last 20/25 minutes to try and counter England’s fresh legs so the Red Roses don’t rack up a big score.
1 Go to commentsVery unlikely the Bulls will beat Leinster in Dublin. It would be different in Pretoria.
1 Go to commentsI think it is a dangerous path to go down to ban a player for the same period that a player they injured takes to recover. Players would be afraid to tackle anyone. I once tackled my best friend at school in a practice match and sprained his ankle. I paid for it by having to play fly-half instead of full-back for the rest of that season’s fixtures.
5 Go to commentsJust such a genuine good bloke…and probably the best all round player in his generation. Good guys do come first sometimes and he handled the W.Cup loss with great attitude.
2 Go to commentsWord in France is that he’s on the radar of a few Top14 clubs.
5 Go to commentsGet blocking Travis, this guy has styles and he’s gonna make a swift impact…!
1 Go to commentsWhat remorse? She claimed that her dangerous tackle wasn’t worthy of a red! She should be compensating the injured player for loss of earnings at the minimum. Her ban should include the recovery time of the injured player as well as the paltry 3 match ban.
5 Go to commentsArdie is a legend. Finished and klaar. Two things: “Yeah, yeah, I have had a few conversations with Razor just around feedback on my game and what I am doing well, what I need to improve on or work-ons. It’s kind of been minimal, mate, but it’s all that I need over here in terms of how to be better, how to get better and what I am doing well.” I hope he’s downplaying it - and that it’s not that “minimal”. The amount of communication and behind the scenes preparation the Bok coaches put into players - Rassie and co would be all over Ardie and being clear on what is expected of him. This stands out for me as something teams should really be looking at in terms of the boks success from a coaching point of view. And was surprised by the comment - “minimal”. In terms of the “debate” around Ireland and South Africa. Nice one Ardie. Indeed. There’s no debate.
2 Go to commentsThere’s a bit of depth there but realistically Australian players have a long way to go to now catch up. The game is moving on fast and Australia are falling behind. Australian sides still don’t priories the breakdown like they should, it’s a non-negotiable if you want to compete on the international stage. That goes for forwards and backs. The Australian team could have a back row that could make a difference but the problem is they don’t have a tight five that can do the business. Tupou is limited in defence, overweight and unfit and the locks are a long way from international standard. Frost is soft and Salakai-Loto is too small so that means they need a Valentini at 8 who has to do the hard graft so limits the effectiveness of the backrow. Schmidt really needs to get a hard working, tough tight 5 if he wants to get this team firing.
4 Go to commentsSorry Morgan you must have been the “go to for a quote” ex player this week. Its rnd 6 and there is plenty of time to cement a starting 15 and finishing 8 so I have no such concerns.
2 Go to commentsGreat read. I wish you had done this article on the ROAR.
2 Go to comments