PRETORIA, South Africa (AP) — New Zealand is sweating on the fitness of fullback Damian McKenzie for the start of the test series against South Africa next week.
Other injured backs Cam Roigard and Will Jordan were expected to be available, All Blacks coach Dave Rennie said on Saturday after beating the Bulls 50-19 at Loftus Versfeld in the last tune-up.
McKenzie twisted his ankle on Tuesday against the Sharks. Scrumhalf Roigard (calf) and winger Jordan (back) had yet to appear on tour along with captain Ardie Savea, who has been rested until the tests and arrived in the republic on Thursday.
“We’re pretty confident (Roigard and Jordan are) going to be right by next week,” Rennie said. “Both of them we want to have a full week of training. They’re ticking enough boxes.
“Damian we’re less confident about but still think he’s a good chance to play in the weekend. Hopefully he can train well on Tuesday. The expectation is all three of those guys will be available.”
If fit, all three are starters against the Springboks at Ellis Park next Saturday.
Injury replacement Richie Mo’unga arrived late Friday and will not be picked for the first test, Rennie said. The flyhalf’s first match for the All Blacks since the 2023 Rugby World Cup will be against the Lions province three days after the opening test.
Rennie name-checked loose forwards Peter Lakai and Anton Segner and winger Josh Moorby after the win over the Bulls. Moorby started the last test against Ireland last month and his chances of retaining the No. 11 jersey improved after the tour-ending shoulder injury to Caleb Clarke.
“We’ve got a plan around selection and there were a handful of positions that were going to be decided on tonight’s performance,” Rennie said.
“We’ve not had a game at altitude and we worked really hard in those circumstances and we’ll be better for it.
“We know the quality we come up against next week is three, four, five fold. We’ve played reasonably well on tour and we know we need to up the ante.”
Hooker Codie Taylor, tour captain in the absence of Savea, also praised their improving set-piece, especially the scrum which has been roughed up by the Boks in recent matchups.
“From where we started with the Stormers and built our way through these club games I feel like we’ve made some great strides as a forward pack,” Taylor said. “By no means are we the finished product … and it will be even tougher next week. But we can be really happy and confident with the steps we’re taking.”
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