Hurricanes recruit Brad Shields ‘open’ to captaincy in Ardie Savea’s absence

Before leaving New Zealand’s shores to pursue an opportunity with then-Eddie Jones-coached England, backrower Brad Shields was handed the captaincy duties at his beloved Hurricanes.

During that season in 2018, the men from the capital charged into the Super Rugby semi-finals – but that’s where their journey ended. The Crusaders moved on with a commanding 30-12 win.

Shields went on to play club rugby for the London Wasps and Perpignan in France, as well as nine matches for England, during a headline-grabbing stint in the northern hemisphere.

But the England international is back. While the Super Rugby Pacific season is still about a month away, Shields is in the mix for the Canes ahead of the 2024 campaign.

After playing for the Wellington Lions in New Zealand’s National Provincial Championship last year, Shields is raring to go ahead of a return to Super Rugby action with the Wellington-based franchise.

Shields’ signing is an important one, too. There’s no Ardie Savea for the Hurricanes in 2024 – there’s no Dane Coles, either. Both All Blacks are plying their club rugby trade in Japan.

While both players can never truly be replaced, there is an opportunity for others to forge their own legacies with the Canes. A new captain will need to step up in Savea’s absence.

Du’Plessis Kirifi and TJ Perenara would have to be in the mix for the honour, but so would Shields – and the England international would entertain the idea as the club continues to develop other leaders.

“I’d certainly be open to it,” Shields told RugbyPass. “It’s not something I’ve put too much thought into.

“Personally, my biggest responsibility coming into the team is just to be as fit and in the best nick as I can rugby-wise that I can be in for the team.

“It’s always tough coming from afar, obviously been in England for a few years – you’re not kind of sure where you sit with the different style of games.

“My biggest thought processes have just been to come into pre-season, bring as much energy, as much knowledge, as much experience and just be the fittest version and the best version that I can possibly bring.

“When you talk about guys like Ardie and Colesy who aren’t in the environment anymore, it gives guys an opportunity to step into those shoes and you’ve almost got no choice but to look within the squad to see who you can develop as a leader. There are definitely a few guys in that space who are doing really, really well.

“We’ve come such a long way in the last few years… but most importantly, those guys like Ardie and Colesy, they leave a big hole. They led by actions and there’s tonnes of really, really positive actions that I’ve seen throughout the pre-season.

“I’m just excited to get to the pre-season games and get to the first couple of rounds and just see where we can take this competition because I think we’re due another really, really good season and take it further than a quarter-final against the Brumbies.”

Savea, who captained the Hurricanes last year before going on to win World Rugby’s Player of the Year award in Paris, came painfully close to a match-winning score in the 2023 quarter-finals.

But the Brumbies held on at home and as they marched on to the semi-finals. The Hurricanes were left to rue what could’ve been.

While the squad looks a little bit different in 2024, the young nucleus of this team is exciting. There’s an abundance of potential within this talented group.

Shields believes the Canes are primed for a “really, really good season.” But with a new coach at the helm, too, the Hurricanes are only focusing on what they can control.

“We’ve got a real mindset of bringing the best out of our squad and the best out of our squad isn’t just the attacking flair that the Hurricanes are potentially used to,” Shields added.

“We’re looking at it from a whole picture. Obviously, success is measured by winning rugby games but we are going to lose games, potentially we’re going to win games, we’re going to win games comfortably hopefully, we’re going to lose games that are probably tight and they’re going to hurt more than any other games.

“The best way to grow is to go through a little bit of that adversity. We’ve looked back on last season and where we fell short.

“Success is winning games and success is winning a championship, but success for us at the moment is getting ourselves in the best possible nick to start Super Rugby and that’s with our connections with each other, the community, and obviously the physical rugby aspect (of) getting our gameplan bloody nailed down.”