All Blacks Captain, Sam Cane is expected to make his return for the Bay of Plenty in the Mitre 10 Cup this week.
With the All Blacks schedule not due to be confirmed until later this week, Ian Foster's 35-man squad departed Wellington to link with their respective Mitre 10 Cup teams.
While crowds cannot attend the opening weekend, the All Blacks are available for the first two rounds of the provincial season which gets underway on Friday night in Albany.
The presence of New Zealand's elite athletes scattered throughout the country's 14 unions will end a drought for many players.
Cane last played for Bay of Plenty in 2016 after tearing his hamstring against Argentina, while Beauden Barrett last pulled on Taranaki's amber and black in 2012.
After almost one month on the sidelines, which included sitting out the North South fixture, Cane has sufficiently recovered from the nasty head knock he took when colliding with Jordie Barrett's hip while playing for the Chiefs against the Hurricanes in Wellington.
[Source: NZ Herald]
