A major blow for the All Blacks as Fijian-born wrecking ball Timoci Tavatavanawai has been ruled out of the remainder of The Rugby Championship after breaking his arm playing for Tasman during the weekend.
Cam Roigard is still recovering from a stress fracture in his foot, which could rule him out for up to four weeks.
Noah Hotham is still recovering from ankle surgery and will also be unavailable for up to a month, and Cortez Ratima is struggling with a fractured rib.
Chiefs and Waikato halfback Xavier Roe has been drafted into the All Blacks squad as coach Scott Robertson moves to limit the damage caused by injuries ahead of the test against the Springboks in Auckland on Saturday night.
Finlay Christie, Kyle Preston, and Roe are the three fully fit halfbacks in the All Blacks squad.
Ratima is continuing to be assessed for his availability for the South Africa showdown at Eden Park after sustaining a rib fracture during the second test loss to Argentina in Buenos Aires on August 24th.
Given the injury crisis at halfback, Ratima’s health will be a major talking point before the All Blacks team is revealed on Thursday.
Lock Patrick Tuipulotu will miss another month following successful surgery on his facial fracture picked up in the first test against Argentina, meaning he won’t face the Springboks and possibly the first test against the Wallabies.
Six-test All Black lock Sam Darry has been called in as injury cover after impressing for Canterbury in his return from a shoulder injury that prevented him from playing a single minute of Super Rugby for the Blues this season.
Anton Lienert-Brown and Tyrel Lomax have both recovered to rejoin the squad in Auckland.
Luke Jacobson and Caleb Clarke have been released to play NPC this weekend and will be available for the second test against the Springboks, presuming they get through those hit outs unscathed.
Christie, Preston, and Darry will be joined by previous injury cover squad members Tevita Mafileo, Josh Lord, and Leroy Carter, who remain with the squad.
Crusaders prop George Bower, who was with the squad as injury cover, has been released following Tamaiti Williams and Lomax coming off the walking wounded list.
The Springboks are vying to become the first team to beat the All Blacks at Eden Park since France triumphed at the ground in 1994.
The Springboks have won their last four tests against the All Blacks, including the 2023 Rugby World Cup final, though all of those took place on neutral or home territory.
The All Blacks will host the Springboks at 7.05pm Saturday at Eden Park.
Meanwhile, the Wallabies will take on Argentina at 4.30pm Saturday.
[Source: stuff.co.nz]
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