Face of the day

Ardie Savea never campaigned to be All Blacks captain. In fact, it was his reticence that convinced coach Dave Rennie he’d made the right choice.

Savea, 32, was confirmed as the new All Blacks skipper on Monday at Rennie’s first squad naming, replacing Scott Barrett, who will no longer be captain, even when he returns from injury.

Rennie said Savea, who he has just finished coaching at Kobe in Japan, isn’t the most loquacious player in the All Blacks, but he’s a natural leader.

“He’s such a good man. He deeply cares, very experienced, highly respected,” Rennie said.

“He’s not a massive talker, so he’ll lead through his actions. Certainly our recent time in Kobe, we made him captain for one game and he played through the roof.

“He’ll do a good job leading the guys, and he’ll lead through his actions.”

RNZ