Three more All Blacks out of Northern Tour with injuries

Add three more to the All Blacks’ injury ward.

Tighthead prop Tyrel Lomax, hooker Samisoni Taukei’aho and loose forward Shannon Frizell are the latest trio to be ruled out of the upcoming Northern Tour because of injury.

Frizell injured his knee during the second Bledisloe Cup test in Sydney, leaving the pitch after a non-contact injury. A scan has confirmed a PCL rupture in his left knee, with an estimated recovery of six weeks.

Taukei’aho was injured in the second half of the Sydney test, suffering a calf tear after accelerating off a maul. He is expected to be out for four to six weeks, which means he will be unavailable for the Northern Tour window through November.

Lomax did not feature in either Bledisloe Cup test but has been managing a disc injury in his neck since the Super Rugby season.

The All Blacks confirmed on Saturday the injury remained aggravated and he would remain home to give it time to settle with treatment.

They join a long list of players unavailable for the tour, with a 36-man squad set to be announced on Tuesday morning.

Captain Ardie Savea (shoulder), loose forward Luke Jacobson (elbow), winger Caleb Clarke (shoulder), first five-eighths Ruben Love (ankle), prop Ollie Norris (knee) and winger Leroy Carter (ankle) had already been ruled out.

Other players whose injuries were being assessed before the Northern Tour include Richie Mo’unga, who missed the Bledisloe Cup tests because of a calf injury.

The All Blacks have three tests confirmed for their Northern Tour, against Scotland (November 8), Wales (November 15) and England (November 22), which completes their round-robin in the Nations Championship.

The championship will conclude with a finals round on the weekend of November 27-29, with six tests when Northern Hemisphere teams play the corresponding seed from the Southern Hemisphere.

Christopher Reive joined the Herald sports team in 2017, bringing the same versatility to his coverage as he does to his sports viewing habits.