All Blacks: Injury-ravaged position gets timely Bledisloe Cup boost
All Blacks scrum-half Cameron Roigard and an inset of head coach Scott Robertson.
The All Blacks have received a timely boost ahead of their upcoming Bledisloe Cup Tests in the Rugby Championship after it was confirmed that star scrum-half Cam Roigard will return to action on Saturday.
Roigard is one of several players in the All Blacks squad who have been released by head coach Scott Robertson to play in the National Provincial Championship (NPC) this weekend.
The 24-year-old has been out of action due to a stress fracture in his right foot, which he sustained during the All Blacks‘ three-Test series against France in July.
Missed the Rugby Championship’s opening rounds
That injury has kept him on the sidelines during this year’s Rugby Championship, which means he missed the All Blacks’ recent encounters against their arch rivals in Auckland and Wellington as well as their matches with Argentina in Cordoba and Buenos Aires.
The Rugby Championship has a bye this weekend, and the All Blacks will be back in action against the Wallabies at Eden Park on September 27 before they meet in their second Bledisloe Cup Test at Optus Stadium in Perth on October 4.
Roigard will return to action for Counties Manukau in Saturday’s NPC clash with Auckland in Pukekohe and is set to face All Blacks team-mates Caleb Clarke and Rieko Ioane, who will be available for the visitors.
If Roigard comes through that match unscathed, he should return to Test duty for that Bledisloe Cup Test at Eden Park, which will offset the All Blacks losing the services of fellow scrum-half Noah Hotham in Saturday’s 43-10 defeat to the Springboks in Wellington.
Hotham limped off the field after he was injured in a collision with behemoth Boks second-row Lood de Jager, and it has subsequently emerged that he has been operated on to mend the clean break suffered to his ankle fibula.
Another All Blacks scrum-half, Cortez Ratima, is still sidelined with a broken rib sustained in the 29-23 defeat to Argentina in Buenos Aires last month.
10 other All Blacks on NPC duty this weekend
Apart from Roigard, Clarke and Ioane, who will be in action in the NPC, over 10 other players in the current All Blacks squad will also be on duty for their respective provinces.
Josh Lord, who has been providing injury cover in Robertson’s squad during the Rugby Championship, is available for Taranaki’s encounter with Hawke’s Bay in New Plymouth on Friday.
Meanwhile, Ruben Love, Kyle Preston and Peter Lakai will be in action for Wellington’s home game against Southland in Saturday’s early game at Porirua Park.
Later on Saturday, George Bower will be part of Otago’s squad when they go head-to-head against Canterbury in their eagerly anticipated Ranfurly Shield fixture in Christchurch.
Anton Lienert-Brown, Luke Jacobson and Samipeni Finau are also available for Waikato’s clash against Tasman in Blenheim on Saturday night with Leicester Fainga’anuku set to line up for the home side.
And on Sunday, Pasilio Tosi will line up for Bay of Plenty when they face Manawatu in the final match of Round Eight’s fixtures in Palmerston North.
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