English pundit criticises All Blacks’ ‘loyalty’ to Sam Cane in warning it could cost them World Cup glory

Former England fly-half Stuart Barnes has not held back on All Blacks captain Sam Cane as he continues to criticise his inclusion in their starting XV.

Barnes, who writes for The Times, feels New Zealand head coach Ian Foster has made the wrong decision sticking with Cane as skipper for the Rugby World Cup.

In his column, the former Bath and British & Irish Lions pivot wrote that he felt the Chiefs and All Blacks back-row’s inclusion “weakened” their starting line-up.

Weaker with Cane in side

While he supported the decision from Eddie Jones to cut Wallabies co-captain Michael Hooper from his team, Barnes was critical of Foster sticking with Cane.

“It appears that the All Blacks have bounced back. They dominated the recent Rugby Championship,” Barnes wrote, before he moved on to criticise the skipper.

“However, while Jones made the decision to omit his openside captain, Ian Foster has stuck with Sam Cane and weakened his team in the process. The All Blacks’ best back-row has no room for the 31-year-old Cane.”

He added: “The balance of Shannon Frizell, Dalton Papali’i and Ardie Savea is their dominant combination. Savea is one of the world’s leading back-row forwards in all three positions.”

Barnes highlighted the recent Bledisloe Cup meeting in Dunedin that the All Blacks came from behind in to prevail 23-20, as he continued his attack on Cane.

“Cane’s most memorable contribution to the match was a missed tackle on an Australian back which led to an early Aussie score,” wrote the former England 10.

The pundit and journalist insisted New Zealand would be a stronger side with Papali’i starting, as he believes that Cane is falling short of the great Richie McCaw.

“He’s [Cane] taken a lot of injuries through a career in which he has looked less and less like the great Kiwi flanker with every knock,” the pundit continued.

Trophy warning from Barnes

“Loyalty is a great trait. It can also be a fundamental weakness in a manager. There is a murky area, between being loyal and ruthless.

“The managers of New Zealand and Australia are on opposite sides from one another. Foster may seem the more decent man but innate decency doesn’t win you trophies.”

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