All Blacks at sixes and sevens

All Blacks captain Richie McCaw should follow the advice of Crusaders boss Todd Blackadder and move from openside to blindside flank.

New Zealand captain Richie McCaw should follow the advice of Crusaders coach Todd Blackadder and make the move from openside to blindside.

A lot has been said in the past week about McCaw's position and where he should continue his career. Although the man himself still wants to continue wearing his famous number seven jersey, time is catching up with him.

That, and the emergence of players like Sam Cane and Matt Todd, means he should make the switch to the other side of the scrum.

Cane impressed when he came off the replacements bench to make his debut against Ireland in the second Test in Christchurch, and was outstanding when he started at openside flank in the third Test in Hamilton.

All Blacks coach Steve Hansen said after that match that he believes Cane's performance proved that he's not a rival for McCaw, but rather the player who can extend his captain's career in the openside flanker's role.

This scenario has a familiar ring to it and reminds me of a situation which South Africa found themselves in at last year's World Cup when former Springbok coach Peter de Villiers opted to play his captain John Smit ahead of Bismarck du Plessis at hooker in his starting XV.

This after Du Plessis proved throughout last season that he was South Africa's best number two, and even a front row authority of the calibre of legendary All Blacks hooker Sean Fitzpatrick hailed him as the world's best in the position.

Hansen's comments about Cane extending McCaw's career suggests that he is either planning to perservere with McCaw as his first-choice openside flanker and with Cane as his back-up, or it could mean that Cane starts certain matches with McCaw playing off the bench.

With McCaw being the All Blacks captain the latter scenario is highly unlikely, and we could soon see a similar scenario to the Springboks' hooker situation of yesteryear developing.

McCaw played at number eight against Ireland in the final Test, but even the most die-hard All Blacks supporters will acknowledge that King Richie was not at his best against Ireland's Sean O'Brien in the first two Tests. While he might have edged out the Leinster openside flanker in the battle for the loose ball in the first Test in Auckland, he came off second best – by some distance – in the second international.

While an aging McCaw is still effective at the breakdowns, that Test in Christchurch showed that he no longer dominates that area as in previous seasons. And with younger players like O'Brien, Australia's David Pocock and Wales' Sam Warburton on the scene – don't expect McCaw to be competitive for much longer.

With Jerome Kaino no longer around I think it's a good idea for him to follow the lead of another legendary All Blacks loose forward, Michael Jones, who made the switch from openside to the blindside flank succesfully. This was partly due to the emergence of Josh Kronfeld as the All Blacks' preferred choice on the openside flank.

Jones added years to his game and his stature as one of the All Blacks greats was not diminished.

McCaw has already proved that he has the ability to play at blindside flank or number eight, for the Crusaders and the All Blacks, as a stop-gap measure. Maybe it's time for him to consider playing in the number six jersey on a permanent basis.

By David Skippers