Ian Foster to know All Blacks schedule by next week

All Blacks coach Ian Foster will know by the end of next week when he gets to unleash his new All Blacks era.

Through the near-constant postponements and schedule alternations, Foster has been forced to patiently wait, and then wait some more, but today marked the official start of his All Blacks tenure, with the naming of a 35-man squad at New Zealand Rugby headquarters that included seven new caps and an abundance of attacking flair.

New Zealand Herald reports a Sanzaar meeting on Thursday will finally set in place the test schedule for the remainder of the year, with an official announcement due on Friday.

The All Blacks are expected to begin with two Bledisloe Cup matches against Dave Rennie's Wallabies but where and when those fixtures are staged is yet to be determined.

While Foster awaits confirmation, the All Blacks will disperse to their provincial unions for the first two rounds of that competition which starts next Friday when North Harbour host Canterbury in Albany.

[Source: NZ Herald]