All Blacks: Kaino's ominous warning

Jerome Kaino is now a major part of the All Blacks' forward pack, assistant coach Wayne Smith says. Photo / Greg Bowker

Jerome Kaino and Wayne Smith both agree the All Blacks blindside flanker is in the form of his career but the man himself believes he can still get better.

Kaino, the 1.96m and 110kg giant of the All Blacks back row, has been a standout player during the opening three games of New Zealand's Rugby World Cup campaign. Although he might not attract as many headlines or plaudits as Richie McCaw, he is fast becoming as important to the All Blacks' loose forward trio as the skipper.

Since making his international debut in 2006, Kaino has continued to improve and following a string of dominant performances in 2008 became a guaranteed starter in any big test match.

"It's taken me a while, but the longer I've been in this team the more I've felt comfortable with the guys around me," Kaino said. "And I've spent time on the field with Richie and [Kieran Read] and it's helped my game a lot ... I'm really enjoying my footy at the moment."

Kaino said he set himself a few goals two years ago, which was the catalyst to his spike in form.

"I feel I'm starting to hit those targets, but in saying that I still feel like there's a lot of room for improvement."

That is an ominous warning for anyone who wants to get in the way of the American Samoa-born player, who has accumulated 44 caps for the All Blacks.

Assistant coach Smith said the former St Kentigern College student was now a major cog in the All Blacks' forward pack.

"I think consistently Jerome's been a real improver over the last three years and this year I think he's really stepped up again," Smith said.

"As he said he's part of a pretty good group at the back [of the scrum] and I think Jerome's always taken his time in the jersey as a really significant time and he wants to leave the jersey in a better spot if possible than when he picked it up. So he's a driven individual and you are seeing that."

The 28-year-old's defensive work has been a feature of his game during the global tournament, and he has also picked up two tries.

He has played in the first three games of the World Cup and the former IRB under-21 player of the year said he had no problem lacing up the boots for every fixture and wanted to play against Canada in Wellington on Sunday.

"Oh, I'm happy to get out there if the coaches let me. I thrive on game time and the more I can get out there then the better I feel my game gets. So I'm happy to go right through and happy to play this week."

In fact, Kaino has been on the paddock for every minute of the All Blacks three games so far. He is averaging eight tackles a game, but it is the brute force with which he delivers them that has the opposition worried.

Canada bring an abrasive style to the fore, particularly at the contact areas with their aggressive loose trio and if Kaino does take the pitch, the Pool A clash could feature some bone-jarring collisions.