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All Blacks lock Brodie Retallick has a ruptured posterior cruciate knee ligament injury and will miss at least the first two matches of the World Cup in France next month.
The 103-Test veteran limped from the pitch before halftime of the All Blacks’ comeback 23-20 victory over the Wallabies in Dunedin on Saturday and there were fears the 32-year-old could miss the entire tournament, starting with the opener against France in Paris on September 9.
However, Retallick was announced along with 32 other players for the squad at Napier’s Pettigrew Arena and the Hawke’s Bay player received the loudest cheer of the night from the invitation-only crowd.
“It’s a little bit stiff and a little bit sore but it’s going to come right in time – we’ve got a couple of weeks up our sleeve so I should be good to go,” he told 1News.
Retallick will likely miss the France match, plus Namibia in Toulouse on September 15, but may be right for Italy two weeks later. The All Blacks’ final pool game is against Uruguay in Lyon before their quarter-final in Paris.
He said he received the injury in a ruck cleanout when he was hit in the back of his right knee. He added: “In a couple of weeks it should free up and I’ll be able to start running again.”
The All Blacks will remain in Napier for three days training and doing community events and head coach Ian Foster told the crowd it was a privilege to be in the city after the devastating floods earlier in the year.
One player who has returned in the nick of time is midfielder David Havili, who tore a hamstring when playing for the Crusaders this season but returned at the weekend to play for Tasman. It will be Havili’s first World Cup.
“It was pretty tough that first couple of weeks not knowing what was ahead and how long I’d be out for… I’m really grateful that I’m here and I can’t wait to get stuck in,” he said.
Asked whether he was confident of an inclusion once he played for Tasman in their victory over Otago in Nelson, Havili, one of four midfielders including Rieko Ioane, Jordie Barrett and Anton Lienert-Brown, said: “You’re never really sure but I knew I just had to give myself a chance. I felt like I played well enough and that I’m back to full strength.”
The first player to walk on to the stage as the names were read out in alphabetical order by former All Blacks skipper Richie McCaw was Beauden Barrett, who is preparing for his third World Cup.
“It’s even more special,” Barrett said afterwards. “I’m not keeping tabs but the buzz is never the same. It’s different and exciting. We can’t wait. It’s official now so we can all enjoy this moment.
“Most of us have had the World Cup in the back of our minds since Tokyo to be fair but especially this year.
“We’ve always been a one-game-at-a-time team, particularly with the Bledisloe Cup and Rugby Championship on the line. We always want to win every game and not look too far ahead but right in front of us now is the World Cup.”
Asked whether he thought the All Blacks were in a good position after four victories this year, Barrett said: “As good as we can be right now I think.
“Winning helps. But we know we still have a lot to work on. We’re really enjoying our time at the moment. There’s a good buzz, we’re bubbling away.
“We’re about to jump on a plane in a couple of weeks’ time so it’s about re-charging the batteries.”
In an interview with Andrew Saville afterwards, McCaw a two-time World Cup winner who admitted to being nervous when reading out the 33 names, said one of the keys to a successful World Cup was preparing for anything.
“That’s one of the things we learned,” he said.
“You try and make things perfect but it’s never going to be like that. Every team going over there is going to have their challenges. Whatever comes along you have to deal with – whether it’s injuries or referees or other teams… if it was easy it wouldn’t mean as much.