There’s a storm brewing about player welfare in rugby. The honed of today will be the crocked of tomorrow, the durable of spirit will be the crushed of hope in the sorry years left to them after retirement. Goodness, who would ever play the game?
Dan Carter probably had to weigh up a few things in his mind in the months of inactivity before the 2015 World Cup. He was already the wrong side of 30, had a history of injury – the groin strain that had kept him out of the closing stages of the 2011 tournament seemed to have spread to many more parts of his body – and the All Blacks seemed to be doing pretty well without him. Aaron Cruden and Beauden Barrett were developing a healthy competition for the vacant No10 shirt. The world champions were moving on after the fractured age of Carter.
He decided to give it another go – to put himself through rehab and rebuilding his credentials on the field. Why would he ever want to do that? To enjoy the exercise of control in the middle of a field, where 15 opponents would do him serious and legitimate harm if ever they could grab him. To be the defining character in front of scores of thousands in his theatre and multimillions watching on television. To be king again.
Job done. Surely that was enough. What could possibly beat that? He had ruled the final and won the World Cup with his special mates, the All Blacks. Richie McCaw knew the moment had come and took to his helicopter for the next rush in life. What are you going to do, Dan?
He headed for France and a dressing room of strangers at Racing 92. He had done it before, using his 2008 sabbatical from New Zealand to give it a go in Europe. This first stint, at Perpignan, ended painfully after only five games. France may then have been unfinished business but it was still a risk. Sure, there was the money, but he was already Dan Carter Inc and unlikely to be stressed financially for the foreseeable future.
The All Blacks looked after Carter. They nursed him through the injuries and gave him space. They gave him time off – that pass to leave and play for Perpignan. Steve Hansen believed in him and told him he would be supported whatever his decision.
Faith and support. They may be a little lacking in this country as we contemplate the damage professional rugby may cause. Over here, the manual of development too often recommends hard weights and easy disposal. Make them big and discard at will.
Carter is a couple of inches off six foot, and weighs in well below 15st. He is officially vulnerable. But off he went again. Paris here he was coming. To the slightly erratic Racing but here they are, in the Champions Cup final no less, facing Saracens in Lyon. And their star turn is to relive the thrill all over again.
Star? His performance against Leicester in Nottingham in the semi-final was far from conventional. It was nevertheless one of the most astute games of his career but far from typical. He was well known for languidly passing the ball to others – to Ma’a Nonu in particular – if no opportunity readily presented itself. He was perfectly happy to kick the leather off the ball for territory and to restart the process of building pressure on the opposition, whom he had just put in possession. He was, that is, perfectly happy to bide his time, let others do the work until his moment came.
But what he did for Racing in the semi took this non-involvement to a new level. It required a partner and, here, Maxime Machenaud stepped forward, a half-back colleague more than happy to use Carter as the ultimate dummy. The scrum-half kicked and ran the show, linking with his forwards, prodding the team forward by hand and boot. It was a performance worthy of Carter himself.
The underused 10 showed his willingness – his gratitude – by contributing elsewhere. No one in the world would have complained if he sat back and simply watched as Machenaud ran the show and as Racing’s less languid New Zealander, Chris Masoe, led the brutal defensive assault on the Leicester attackers.
Carter, however, joined in just when it appeared Leicester, knocked out of their rhythm by Masoe’s men, were finally starting to put their counterattacking game back together. Carter did not suddenly take over from Machenaud but signed up for the defence. He made two tackles that did as much as any to put Racing into the final. It was not a conventional contribution but it was certainly as telling as any. It is a feature of Carter’s career that he can redefine himself at will, change his role on command for the good of the team.
Not everyone can be as good as Carter. Or even half as good but as the storm blows about how not to abuse the bodies and minds of players, there will always be his example. It will hurt along the way but it’s worth it. To rule the game – just to play a little part in a successful team – is why people are drawn towards danger. To be Dan Carter, now there’s a dream …
