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Uncapped Hurricanes prop called up by the All Blacks

Tevita Mafileo of the All Blacks looks on during a New Zealand All Blacks training session at Mt Smart Stadium on June 28, 2023 in Auckland, New Zealand. (Photo by Phil Walter/Getty Images)

The All Blacks have called up uncapped Hurricanes prop Tevita Mafileo as injury cover for the trip to Argentina as they prepare for their Rugby Championship opener.

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Doubts over the fitness of Crusaders tighthead Fletcher Newell, who hasn’t played since undergoing toe surgery, led to the selection.

Mafileo will join the squad in Auckland and fly out to Argentina on Sunday.

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The 25-year-old Hurricanes prop played for the All Blacks XV last November and was named as one of five props in the XV squad to tour Japan but will now provide cover for the All Blacks.

Chiefs breakout star Shaun Stevenson is tipped to travel with the squad as Mark Telea battles injury, while Crusaders pair Leicester Fainga’anuku and Sam Whitelock also are in doubt.

Fainga’anuku has a calf complaint after the Super Rugby final while Whitelock played through an Achilles injury against the doctor’s recommendation.

The All Blacks ‘didn’t want him to play’ but the veteran managed to get through unscathed without further injury and is now battling soreness.

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Comments

6 Comments
f
fraser 633 days ago

whats wrong with Dan LB

G
Greg 635 days ago

Great selection! This guy has a lot of upside as a test scrummager on either side - more so than Te Maiti Williams who, if they chuck him in now, might be found out in scrums, as great as he is around the field.

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RedWarriors 4 hours ago
Antoine Dupont undergoes surgery on injured knee ahead of long absence

Rugby incident, happens scores of times in a game. Dupont wasn’t even hit with much force, Beirne just clears him and force is added from behind from Furlong.

We can’t have special treatment for France just because their star is the one who gets unlucky.

There is already a lack of clarity around actual Written decisions and how they differ from bans.

For example, Mauvaka the official written decision states Mauvaka to have made a ‘reckless’, ‘deliberate’, shot ‘to the head’ of a ‘player in a vulnerable position’ on the ground. That’s a high level entry ban of 10 weeks. However, the press release did not show ‘reckless’ or ‘vulnerable player’ ticked alloweing Mauvaka to enter at the 6 match mid range.

Similarly Ntamack’s written report showed that it was a ‘reckless’, ‘head shot’ with ‘injury’. The injury was a fully displaced nose bone and Ntamack apologizes for the injury in the written report. This should give Ntamack an entry level of 6 weeks but in the Press Release ‘Injured’ is unticked meaning Ntamack gets away with a 4 week entry ban. This is not counting the fact that the world knows he deliberately injured Thomas.

No. France have been abusing the system for years, recently spreading disinformation about the Ringrose ban in order to undermine confidence in the process.

Giving France even more special treatment is not the answer.

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