Ex-All Black identifies Sam Cane’s successor in New Zealand’s starting line-up

David Skippers
Sam Cane James Parsons and Ethan Blackadder image

All Blacks Sam Cane, James Parsons and Ethan Blackadder.

Former New Zealand and Blues hooker James Parsons believes Ethan Blackadder is the right man to replace Sam Cane in the All Blacks’ back-row when he retires later this year.

After receiving a red card in last year’s Rugby World Cup final loss to the Springboks, the former All Blacks captain headed to Japan where he played club rugby for Suntory Sungoliath before returning to New Zealand earlier this year.

In May, it was revealed that the openside flanker had signed a new three-year contract with Suntory Sungoliath but was still available for the All Blacks until the end of the 2024 Test campaign.

Returned to Test action via the bench against Argentina

However, he underwent back surgery which kept him on the sidelines for New Zealand’s July internationals with England and Fiji before returning to action off the bench in the All Blacks’ 42-10 Rugby Championship victory over Argentina in Auckland last month.

Following that appearance, Cane was promoted to run-on side for the clash with the Springboks in Johannesburg – after Dalton Papali’i was sidelined with a thumb injury – and retained his position for the corresponding match with the world champions in Cape Town and last weekend’s clash with Australia in Sydney.

And the 32-year-old is set to make his 100th Test appearance in Saturday’s Bledisloe Cup rematch in Wellington. If he remains fit, he should also be included in All Blacks’ coach Scott Robertson’s squad for their end-of-year tour to Europe before bringing down the curtain on his Test career which started in 2012 when he made his debut against Ireland.

And Parsons believes although Papali’i played well on the openside flank for the All Blacks during the early parts of their Test campaign, Blackadder is the right man to take over from Cane when he retires.

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When asked who he feels is the best like-for-like replacement for Cane to make the All Blacks’ loose trio work in the long term, Parsons highlighted how hard Cane worked in the recent Test victory against the Wallabies in Sydney and said he sees similar characteristics in Blackadder.

“Well you’d have to think based on numbers Ethan Blackadder,” he told the Aotearoa Rugby Pod. “To show Sam Cane’s worth and what we’re trying to talk about is the Tamaiti Williams no try, with the inside pass, that the speed and desperation to get on that loose ball that created that opportunity, it was a lot closer to a lot of orange jerseys.

‘He has an absolute workhorse motor’

“It was miles closer to a lot of orange jerseys, but his desperation and want to dive on that ball to create that opportunity, that was as big as Ardie (Savea)’s try, that was as big as Wallace (Sititi)’s carries if not bigger because it created an opportunity for us to score and that’s what we mean and if you look at Ethan’s numbers even when he was at six sometimes he had higher numbers than Sam.

“He has an absolute workhorse motor.”

Parsons believes his former Blues team-mate Papali’i can perform a similar role but believes he can make a better impact as a replacement.

“Can Dalton play that role? Absolutely, but can he be a massive solution off the bench? Yeah,” he added.

“Dalton is a power athlete that can play six, seven or eight, well mind you Ethan can play six, seven or eight, but what Dalton could potentially do against tiring bodies could actually work as a one-two punch.”

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