His performances improved substantially as the season progressed and with Dan Carter unavailable and Stephen Brett injured, Slade became the first choice 10 for the Canterbury side.

In the 2009 Air New Zealand Cup, Slade shifted to fullback as Stephen Brett was again healthy and reclaimed the number 10 jersey.

For the 2010 ITM Cup, Slade reclaimed the starting first five position for Canterbury – along with first-choice goal-kicking duties – and emerged as one of the most dominant players in the competition.

Playing mainly out of position on the wing, he emerged as a regular member of the squad, making 11 starts as well as a substitute appearance in the semi-final against the Bulls.

Slade's terrible luck with injuries continued into 2012 as his season was again cut short after suffering a broken leg in March against the Brumbies in Canberra.

On the back of that solid performance, he was selected into the All Blacks training squad for the third leg of the Tri Nations Series although he didn't see any game action.

In 2010, Slade was called up again as a replacement for injured fly-half Dan Carter for the All Blacks final match in the 2010 Tri-Nations against the Wallabies on 11 September.

[9] Slade was also called into the End of Year Tour and started a test match on the right wing and also made a strong appearance from bench in the All Blacks final game against Wales in Cardiff.

On 14 April 2015, it was announced Slade had signed a two-year deal with French Pro D2 side Pau[10] as the team was promoted to Top 14.