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Why Canterbury product Sam Darry made the 'selfish' decision to sign with the Blues
With three All Blacks locks on the books as well as two second-rowers who were brought into the New Zealand national squad last season, it’s not hard to see why Cantabrian Sam Darry may have wanted to continue his rugby development away from the Crusaders region.
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In Sam Whitelock, Scott Barrett, Luke Romano, Quin Strange and Mitch Dunshea, the Crusaders have perhaps the best locking stocks of any rugby club in the world.
For a young lock coming through the system, working under that quintet would bring certain benefits, of course, in the form of the best mentorship that any developing player could ever hope for. However, on the flip side, opportunities on the field would be at a minimum.
20-year-old Darry, who debuted for Canterbury in last year’s Mitre 10 Cup, knew that his decision to sign with the Blues might ruffle a few feathers, but it was ultimately the best one for his burgeoning career.
“I owe the Crusaders a lot because I’ve come through the academy, done my schooling there, did an ITC (interim training contract) with them last year,” Darry told Stuff ahead of this weekend’s clash with the Highlanders. “They’ve pretty much shaped me into the player I am today, and I’m extremely grateful for that.
“But I thought it’s the kind of decision I’ve got to be a wee bit selfish with. You’ve got to think about what’s best for you. At this time I thought coming up here was a great opportunity for me, not only in rugby but also in life.”
For Strange and Dunshea, effectively the Crusaders’ back-ups behind Whitelock and Barrett, they at least know that the men ahead of them will need to be rested at times throughout the season – and there’s always a bench spot on offer.
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That wouldn’t have been the case for Darry, however, who would have been sixth in the pecking order and almost certainly would not have picked up a full-time contract for 2021.
Having made the move to the Blues, however, Darry is now on track to make his Super Rugby debut and will partner Patrick Tuipulotu in today’s clash with the Highlanders at Eden Park.
It wasn’t just the playing minutes that lured Darry north, however, with the overall package sold to the young lock by Leon MacDonald an extremely enticing offer.
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“It was the whole package of being up in Auckland, the coaching staff, the trainers, the opportunities for developing and hopefully growing into a player who can play at the top level,” Darry said. “It takes me out of my comfort zone and makes me stand on my own two feet a bit more.
“I wanted to be somewhere I can really grow and learn. Once I started talking to people about the Blues, I only heard good things about Leon and Tom Coventry. Everyone was singing their praises, and I thought, ‘Those are people I want to learn off.'”
Standing at over 6 foot 6, Darry is comfortably the tallest player in the Blues squad – though he’s also the lightest of the team’s locking contingent. Undoubtedly, the son of All Blacks nutritionist Kat Darry will take on a few more pounds as he navigates the early stages of his professional career.
Darry and Blues captain Tuipulotu will line up against the Highlanders’ Josh Dickson and Manaaki Selby-Rickit in this afternoon’s battle for the Gordon Hunter Memorial Trophy.
The match is set to kick off at 3:35pm NZT and will be available to stream via RugbyPass with a Super Rugby Aotearoa subscription.
Comments on RugbyPass
The shoulder is a “joint” with multiple bones. You don’t “fracture” a shoulder, you fracture any one or more of the bones that make up a shoulder.
2 Go to commentsOh dear, bones too suspect to continue?
2 Go to commentsBold headline considering the Canes and Blues are 1 and 2 and the Brumbies were soundly beaten by the Chiefs and Blues. Biggest surprise is Rebels 4 Crusaders 12 - no one saw that coming. If Aus are improving that’s great 👍
1 Go to commentsAnna, You are right, we need to have patience whilst the others catch up to England and France. Also it is the PWR that has been the game changer for England. the RFU put money into that initially at the expense of the Red Roses. I was sceptical at first but it has paid off in spades.
1 Go to commentsI think Matt Proctor became a 1 test AB in the same fixture. Cameron is quality and has been great this season, can’t believe’s he only 27. Realistically how would he not be selected for ABs squad this year. Only Dmac is ahead of him as a specialist 10. With Jordan out, it will come down to where and when Beauden Barrett slots back in, and where they want to play Ruben Love. Cameron seems an absolute lock in for the wider squad though. Added benefit of TJ-Cameron-Jordie combination at 9, 10, 11 too.
1 Go to commentsFarcical, to what end would someone want to pay to keep this thing going.
1 Go to commentsHavili, our best 12 by a mile, will be in the squad, if he stays fit. JB is the most overrated AB in the last 50 years.
61 Go to commentsWe had during the week twilight footy, twilight cricket, tw golf plus there was the athletics club. Then the weekend was rugby 15s plus the net ball, really busy club scene back then but so much has changed and rugby has suffered. And it was all about changing lifestyles.
6 Go to commentsIn the 70s and 80s my club ran 5 Senior sides plus a Vets. Now it is 2 sides with an occasional 3rd team. Players have difficulty getting to training now, not sure why and the commitment is not there. It seems to me more a problem of people applying themselves and not expecting to turn up and play whenever they want to.
6 Go to commentsROG’s contract is until 2027. The conversation about a successor to Galthie after RWC 2027 may be starting now. We can infer that Galthie’s reign stops then. He is throwing the Irish Coaching Job angle in because he is Irish. The next Irish coach MUST be Leo Cullen. As well as being the best coach available, coaching the vast majority of Irish Internationals week in week out, he has shown incredible skill at recruiting the best coaching staff for the job in hand. That was a failing in France. Cullen is a shrewd guy and if there is a need for foreign coaches underneath him he won’t hesitate. Rightly so. Ireland does need to start to bring Irish coaches through. Not just at the professional level but we need to train coaches to man new pathways for developing kids from schools/clubs up through the divisions.
8 Go to commentsNo Islam says it must rule where it stands Thus it is to be deleted from this planet Earth
18 Go to commentsThis team probably does not beat the ABs sadly Not sure if BPA will be available given his signing for Force but has to enter consideration. Very strong possibility of getting schooled by the AB props. Advantage AB. Rodda/Skelton would be a tasty locking combination - would love to see how they get on. Advantage Wallabies. Backrow a risk of getting out hustled and outmuscled by ABs. Will be interesting to see if the Blues feast on the Reds this weekend the way they did the Brumbies we are in big trouble at the breakdown. Great energy, running and defence but goalkicking/general kicking/passing quality in the halves bothers me enormously. SA may have won the World Cup for a lot of the tournament without a recognised goalkicker but Pollard in the final made a difference IMO. Injuries and retirements leave AB stocks a bit lighter but still stronger. 12 and 13 ABs shade it (Barret > Paisami, Ione = Ikitau, arguably) Interesting clash of styles on the wings - Corey Toole running around Caleb Clark and Caleb running over the top of Toole. Reece vs Koro probably the reverse. Pretty even IMO. 15s Kelleway = Love See advantage to ABs man for man, but we are not obviously getting slaughtered anywhere which makes a nice change. Think talent wise we are pretty even and if our cohesion and teamwork is better than the ABs then its just about doable.
11 Go to commentsCompletely agree. More friday night games would be a hit. RFU to make sure every club has a floodlit pitch. Club opens again Saturday to welcome touch / tag. Minis and youths on Sunday
6 Go to comments1.97m and 105Kg? Proportionately, probably skinnier than me at 1.82 and 82kilos. He won’t survive against the big guys at that weight.
56 Go to commentsThe value he brought to the crusaders as an assistant was equal to what he got out of being there. He reflected not only on the team culture but also the credit he attributed to the rugby community. Such experience shouldn’t be overlooked.
8 Go to commentsGood luck Aussie
11 Go to commentssmith at 9 / mounga 10 / laumape 12 / fainganuku 14
61 Go to commentsBar the injuries, it’s pretty much their top team …
2 Go to commentsDon’t disagree with much of this but it appears you forgot Rodda and Beale, who started at the Force on the weekend.
11 Go to commentsExcept for the injured Zach Gallagher this would be Saders best forward pack for the season. Blackadder needs to stay at 7, for all of Christies tackling he is not dominant and offers very little else. McNicholfullback is maybe a good option, Fihaki not really upto it, there was a reason Burke played there last year. Maybe Havilli to 2nd five McLeod to wing. Need a strong winger on 1 side to compliment Reece
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