Lam had signed the unheralded first-five before finding his own position advertised as the Blues board became fed up with the constant losses and insipid displays from his players.
Noakes, meanwhile, had a few questions of his own in the deep south as he came to the end of his debut Super Rugby season.
"I was excited but, I'm not going to lie, there was a sense of 'well, I'm not too sure how I'm going to fit'," he said of his reaction at learning Sir John Kirwan was to take over from Lam.
"It was a completely different coaching staff and [I wondered] what their kind of game plan is going to be, whether it suits my game plan and how I fit in with it. It certainly ran through my mind. Luckily enough it's worked out well for me."
It sure has. Noakes has been one of the reasons why the Blues have been performing so consistently well this season.
Unlike last year when Piri Weepu and Gareth Anscombe rotated in and out of the No10 jersey, Noakes has started every game as playmaker and is a constant and calm presence, directing a talented bunch of teammates outside him he refers to as "my backs".
Noakes' game direction was one of the reasons why the Blues pushed the Reds so close in Brisbane last weekend and he will tonight have to call on all of his guile and organisational skills to find a way through the Stormers' suffocating defence at North Harbour Stadium.
The 27-year-old believed his form was improving again after a good start and a slight dip which coincided with a defeat to the Chiefs and a scratchy victory over the Highlanders.
"It's growing and being the new guy as well you have to earn the trust and respect through being able to boss and direct guys around because as if you don't have that it's hard to have the eight guys in front of you doing what you want," he said.
Asked about the time he is creating for himself with the ball, Noakes replied: "That's the beauty of having those sorts of guys outside you. You get a bit more time because people are a little bit more concerned about them."
Noakes, who grew up in Auckland, travelled to Dunedin to study law and found himself playing for Otago and the Highlanders, before shifting to the Bay of Plenty provincial team.
"I really enjoyed my time with the Highlanders and thought I fitted in well down there. I knew a lot of the guys through my time with Otago before moving to Bay of Plenty but I guess moving to Auckland there was that unknown.
"A lot of [the Blues players] I had never met before apart from shaking their hands at the end of a game."
The ability of Noakes and his teammates to maintain possession against the Reds in a match they probably deserved to win highlighted how far they have come from last season.
Second in the New Zealand conference and fifth overall, they will take on the Stormers tonight with confidence despite the South Africans' win over the Hurricanes in Palmerston North.
"We're bringing in a couple of new sorts of things to our basic structure... little subtle changes we think will help us exploit the defence. As soon as you're slightly in behind the defensive line it makes it a whole lot easier, especially against such an organised defensive side."
Coaches Kirwan and Sir Graham Henry had come up with the plan, he said. Now it will be carried by the player who had to introduce himself to his teammates but whose reputation is quickly growing in New Zealand and beyond.
Blues team to play the Stormers at North Harbour Stadium tonight (fri), kick-off 7.35pm is: Charles Piutau, Frank Halai, Francis Saili, Jackson Willison, Rene Ranger, Chris Noakes, Piri Weepu, Peter Saili, Luke Braid, Steven Luatua, Ali Williams (c), Culum Retallick, Angus Ta'avao, Keven Mealamu, Tom McCartney. Reserves: Quentin MacDonald, Ofa Tu'ungafasi, Anthony Boric, Brendon O'Connor, Jamison Gibson-Park, Baden Kerr, Lolagi Visinia.
Stormers: Joe Pietersen, Gio Aplon, Juan de Jongh, Jean de Villiers (c), Bryan Habana, Gary van Aswegen, Dewaldt Duvenage, Duane Vermeulen, Rynhardt Elstadt, Siya Kolisi, Andries Bekker, De Kock Steenkamp, Frans Malherbe, Deon Fourie, Steven Kitshoff. Reserves: Scarra Ntubeni, Pat Cilliers, Eben Etzebeth, Nizaam Carr, Louis Schreuder, Elton Jantjies, Damian de Allende.
