New Zealand have called up uncapped lock Sam Darry for the Fiji Test in San Diego on Friday, with Patrick Tuipulotu staying at home to rest after the series win against England.
Tuipulotu battled through two Tests against Steve Borthwick’s England only weeks after tearing a knee ligament playing for Auckland Blues in Super Rugby and rolling his ankle in their win over the Waikato Chiefs in the final.
All Blacks attack coach Leon MacDonald said Tuipulotu deserved a break after “two massive efforts” against a physical English pack.
“We just feel we need to look after him a little bit,” MacDonald told New Zealand media.
Darry, Tuipulotu’s teammate at the Blues, will be in line for a Test debut and may share it with a number of uncapped players including Wellington midfielder Billy Proctor and Chiefs loose forward Wallace Sititi.
Winger Caleb Clarke is also available after recovering from a rib injury.
The 2-0 home series win over England was a positive start for new All Blacks coach Scott Robertson despite lukewarm reviews of his team’s performances in national media.
MacDonald said the team had areas to tidy up and he expected the new faces to get up to speed with the game plan quickly.
“The expectation is we just keep getting better from our previous performances,” he said.
“Like everything, they look good at training and when the pressure comes on in the game and fatigue comes in, that’s when names, calls and all that start dropping off.
“So, (I am) really confident the more time we spend together, the smoother our game is going to be, both attack and defence, and our set piece.”
Leave a Reply