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All Blacks prospect Pari Pari Parkinson ruled out for 12 months

(Photo by Joe Allison/Getty Images)

Highlanders star and All Blacks prospect Pari Pari Parkinson has been dealt a significant blow after suffering a serious knee injury that will keep him sidelined for an entire year.

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Parkinson left the field in pain after Tasman teammate Anton Segner collided into him while tackling Wellington midfielder Peter Umaga-Jensen during last weekend’s NPC clash in Blenheim.

The Highlanders announced on Friday that Parkinson subsequently sustained a “multi-ligament rupture” to his right knee and will miss the entirety of next year’s Super Rugby Pacific campaign and most, if not all, of the NPC in 2022.

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    The diagnosis is a cruel one for Parkinson, who has been tipped as a potential All Blacks candidate for some time now due to his enormous 2.04m, 119kg frame.

    It also serves as familiar yet unwelcome news for the Highlanders, who have already dealt with or are currently dealing with similarly serious knee injuries to fullback Sam Gilbert, halfback Folau Fakatava and wing Jona Nareki.

    A formidable presence at the lineout, a rugged defender and an aggressive ball-carrier, Parkinson, who signed a one-year contract extension with the Highlanders in March, will be a sorely missed at the Dunedin-based franchise next year.

    Assistant coach Clarke Dermody empathised with the 25-year-old lock, who is a Maori All Blacks representative, after hearing about his latest injury, which comes after he recovered from a serious ankle injury earlier this year.

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    “I feel for Pari, he has worked hard to get into good shape after a couple of injury setbacks recently, his form for Tasman has been outstanding and he certainly looked set for a big season with us,” Dermody said in a statement.

    “We will work closely with him during his rehab and make sure he comes back strong and ready to go in 2023.”

    With Josh Dickson, Bryn Evans and Manaaki Selby-Rickit already in their ranks for next season, the Highlanders will begin their search for a player to replace Parkinson.

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    J
    JW 45 minutes ago
    Kyren Taumoefolau All Blacks stance splits opinions on eligibility

    MP are a NZ side through and through, NZ is even having to pay for it.

    Yes they caved to public demand, I bet it accomplished a lot of internal goals. They could have left it to the other groups, but I’m of the belief that they weren’t showing the capability to make it work as being a good reason for NZR to jump in and do it. I think it’s actually funded 50/50 between NZR and WR though.

    (when nothing was stopping a pi player playing for any side in Super Rugby)

    Neither is that fact true. Only 3 non NZ players are allowed in each squad.


    I see you also need to learn what the term poach means - take or acquire in an unfair or clandestine way. - Moana have more slots for non eligible players (and you have seen many return to an NZ franchise) so players are largely making their own choice without any outside coercion ala Julian Savea.

    Not one of these Kiwis and Aussies would go live in the Islands to satisfy any criteria, and I’d say most of them have hardly ever set foot in the islands, outside of a holiday.

    Another inaccurate statement. Take Mo’unga’s nephew Armstrong-Ravula, if he is not eligible via ancestry in a couple of generations time, he will be eligible because he plays his rugby there (even if he’s only their for rugby and not living there), that is a recent change made by World Rugby to better reflect examples like Fabian Holland and Fakatava.

    It’s becoming the jump-ship/zero loyalty joke that international League is.

    Look I understand you’re reason to cry and make an example at any opportunity, but you don’t really need to anymore, other recent changes made by WR are basically going to stop the Ireland situation, and time (perhaps no more than a decade) will fix the rest.

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