The Chiefs Rugby are set to revert to a co-captaincy model for their 2021 Super Rugby season in order to ease the workload on All Blacks skipper Sam Cane.
Fresh off a first year in charge of the national side, Cane is still going to lead the Chiefs, but is set to be relieved of sole responsibility, as the franchise goes back to their familiar dual-leader model.But, with Cane having since been elevated to the All Blacks captaincy as well, interim Chiefs coach Clayton McMillan told Stuff they had to be wary of not overburdening their talismanic openside flanker, so are looking to promote another leader.
“Sam will still be the captain... but what we want to do is give him some support, not just around the on-field stuff, but the off-field stuff,” McMillan said.
“Captaincy can be a big weight to carry on one person’s shoulders. So if we can get some common agreement on who that other person might be, then that’s certainly the motivation, to have co-captains.
From then on it continued, with Messam and Aaron Cruden leading the following two years, before Cane stepped up alongside Cruden for 2016 and 2017, then Colin Cooper kept the shared model in having Charlie Ngatai (2018) then Brodie Retallick (2019) alongside Cane.
But with the All Blacks job being an all-consuming affair, it has become commonplace for the national skipper to give up leadership duties at Super Rugby level.
The Crusaders haven’t been ones to opt for co-captains, so Kieran Read relieved Richie McCaw of the role in 2014 and 2015, then after his first season as New Zealand captain, Read was replaced by Sam Whitelock as skipper for 2017-19. 2021 Super Rugby season
