From that (admittedly very short) clip they put out, Ash seemed much more comfortable speaking infront of the entire squad.

A good move IMO, a leader in the forwards and the backs.

Wasn't Rohan Smith's change to "no specific captain" at the start of 2023 mostly just a way of getting around Leeming who he didn't rate as a player never mind captain?

The big plus for me is that it’s an indication of less game time for Cam Smith. Arthur is in the best place to judge who the players will respect and listen to so I’ve no strong feelings on the appointments.

I'm not sure bout that, whatever your thoughts on RS he wasn't shy about getting rid of players

My belief is that Smith thought just stripping the captaincy from Leeming and giving it to someone else would cause problems within the squad. So he went with the fudge solution before giving it solely to Cam Smith once Leeming was gone.