Rugby: Cane playing follow-the-leader

Sam Cane has been learning from Richie McCaw.

Sam Cane couldn't be missed in his last All Black test. Blood surged from a gash in his head after it took the full chomp of tighthead prop Owen Franks' teeth when he and his All Black teammate clattered into the same melee.

Cane was stitched and bandaged but there was a rosy leaching into the plaster and tape around his headgear. Late in the Eden Park test he had to go off for more repairs but minutes later jogged back.

It was his 10th test and another chance to start in the No7 jersey.

Since getting the Steve Hansen tick of approval last season, a range of circumstances has delivered Cane a start in six internationals. It is a ratio many of his predecessors just dreamed about as Richie McCaw began to slap an iron grip on the job after his 2001 debut in Ireland.

But with McCaw on his sabbatical in June and then in the casualty ward in this Rugby Championship with an injured knee, Cane has been asked to do more of the frontline work.

His elevation is one of those fascinating rugby situations. Tanerau Latimer and Cane have shared the open-side duties at the Chiefs because the coaches believe the team get the best out of them that way. When it comes to the big games, Latimer has been the preferred starter.

But come test squad announcements, Cane gets approval as McCaw's lieutenant while Latimer is left to muse on his misfortune, even more so this year when another open-sider was needed and Matt Todd was picked.

In making his All Blacks debut last season, Cane at 20 years and 155 days was almost six months younger than McCaw was when he debuted. Each played his first test against Ireland, McCaw starting 12 years ago with a man of the match award in Dublin.

Last year, Cane tagged along close to his skipper, watching how he dealt with all the aspects of his job. He studied his preparation at the gym, on the training field and in the computer room.

He watched the lines his captain ran on the field, when he decided to attack the breakdown and how he made his decisions.

Hansen liked what he saw and was certain Cane had all the attributes. "He's ready," Hansen said before Cane's bloodied evening. "He's just got to be his own man and do his own things that he does really well."