Injury crisis hands Kirifi his All Blacks recall ahead of second Bledisloe Test in Sydney

Du’Plessis Kirifi has been handed an All Blacks recall as a reserve for Saturday’s second Bledisloe Cup Test against Australia in Sydney, with New Zealand coach Dave Rennie forced to reshape his loose forward options after a wave of injuries decimated the squad.

Ardie Savea’s season is over following a shoulder injury sustained in the third Test against South Africa in Johannesburg, where Luke Jacobson also suffered an elbow tendon problem that has placed him on the long-term rehabilitation list. Ethan Blackadder subsequently reported a calf problem, and Anton Segner picked up a concussion after colliding with Asafo Aumua during last weekend’s first Bledisloe Test at Eden Park.

The mounting casualty list made selection “a bit easier” this week, Rennie acknowledged, after it took three separate meetings to finalise the matchday 23 for the Eden Park opener. “There were a couple of tight positions where our thinking was that we’d make changes this week in those spots, and there’s been a couple of injuries, so yeah, a little bit more straightforward this week,” the coach said on Thursday.

Kirifi’s path back into contention has not been without scrutiny. Rennie had previously flagged concerns about the flanker’s penalty-to-turnover ratio during the Super Rugby Pacific season, where Kirifi won 11 turnovers but conceded 10 penalties across 13 games. His form in the NPC with Wellington told a markedly different story — 13 turnovers against just four penalties — an improvement Rennie described as “much better reward.”

“Du’Plessis, I guess there’s been a lot of talk about him over the last few months,” Rennie said. “Look, he’s a hell of a player. Had a big season with the Hurricanes. There’s a couple of areas that we asked him to work on, especially post-tackle, and it’s more around technical excellence, so he’s going to get rewarded rather than penalised. He’s worked really hard in that area; he’s been sending us in videos showing him training it, and so on.”

Rennie was clear about what Kirifi is expected to bring off the bench in Sydney. “We felt we needed someone to give us genuine post-tackle presence. Obviously we’ve got Pete Lakai out there, but I think Dupes can offer something a little bit different,” the coach said.

For Kirifi, the Hurricanes co-captain, the recall represents the culmination of targeted work on the technical deficiencies that had kept him out of Rennie’s plans — even if the circumstances that finally opened the door were far from ideal for the All Blacks.