Shannon Frizell 'fully selectable' for All Blacks after Japan return, says Jason Ryan

Shannon Frizell is available for All Blacks selection ahead of Saturday’s Test against the Wallabies at Eden Park in Auckland, with assistant coach Jason Ryan declaring the loose-forward “fully selectable” following his return from a three-year stint in Japan.

Frizell, 32, was named in Dave Rennie’s 34-man squad for the two-Test series against Australia after spending the past three weeks rebuilding match fitness with Tasman in the Hilux NPC competition. It is his first All Blacks squad appearance since the 2023 Rugby World Cup.

“He’s come in in great shape, and I think he’s got a lot of confidence out of playing his two or three games for Tasman, which was important,” Ryan told reporters in Auckland on Monday. “He’s been over in Japan, and although he hasn’t played much at all really this season, he needed to have these games. So he’s fully selectable. He’s come in fresh, and we definitely know what he’s capable of.”

Ryan pointed to Frizell’s 2022 and 2023 seasons — in which the 33-Test flanker established himself as one of the All Blacks’ most destructive ball-carriers — as evidence of what he can still offer at Test level. “2022 and 23 are a couple of special seasons for him, really. He’s played 30 or 40 Tests, and yeah, it’s exciting.”

The assistant coach was candid about the physical demands of reintegrating a player of Frizell’s size. “I think he showed enough glimpses in the last two Tasman games; I thought the first two his old lungs ran out a bit, which they did. He’s a big body, so he actually needs movement. He needs to run, and his physicality — he’s really bulky in his chest and his legs. So he’s got power. The match fitness was important. I think he’s got that now.”

Whether Frizell starts or comes off the bench against an unbeaten Wallabies side under Les Kiss remains to be decided, but Ryan made clear the coaching staff intend to use him across both Tests. “I think he will add some value in these two games, and he needs to. We’ve got to get him in, and the quicker he gets in, the more he comes up to speed.”

Frizell joins a competitive loose-forward group that includes Wallace Sititi, Anton Segner, Simon Parker, Peter Lakai, and Ethan Blackadder. Ryan’s comments came after he acknowledged the All Blacks had endured a difficult tour of South Africa, admitting he had looked hard at himself in the aftermath.