Tana Umaga casts serious doubt over Will Jordan's availability for All Blacks' Wales test

Will Jordan’s participation in New Zealand’s Nations Championship clash with Wales in Cardiff this weekend is in serious doubt after assistant coach Tana Umaga delivered a downbeat injury update on Monday, following the winger’s hamstring scare at Murrayfield.

Jordan, who has started every Test under head coach Dave Rennie in 2026, limped off during the second half of the All Blacks’ match against Scotland. Jordie Barrett also departed early, placed in HIA protocols after a collision with Blair Kinghorn’s shoulder.

“Yeah, no, not great, I’d say at this stage, but it’s still early, and you know he has to go through a bit more testing to wait,” defence coach Umaga told Herald Now’s Ryan Bridge when asked about Jordan. “Obviously, it’s still over 24 hours since the injury. So we’ve got to get the appropriate scans and medical checkups as much as we can to see where he’s at on that spectrum, so we can make informed decisions.”

Rennie’s own post-match comments had already suggested both players were unlikely to feature against Wales, and Umaga’s assessment all but confirms Jordan will miss the fixture.

The injury concerns arrive at a delicate moment for the All Blacks, who had already been managing the fitness of Richie Mo’unga and Ethan Blackadder heading into the Nations Championship. Mo’unga had been absent since pulling his calf in training ahead of the first Bledisloe Cup Test against Australia, while Blackadder picked up a calf niggle during the warm-up at Eden Park.

Both players have since returned to full training and are available for selection in Cardiff. “Ethan and Richie both trained fully last week, so they are selectable here,” forwards coach Ryan confirmed in Bath on Monday. “They’ve come along really well. Credit to the medical crew for getting them right — it was a couple of big conversations around them being on the plane, so they’re going well.”

With Jordan potentially sidelined, versatile loose-forward Leicester Fainga’anuku is expected to offer Rennie additional options across the back row and midfield. “He’s a genuine hybrid,” Ryan said. “He has the ability to float between both. He’s been sitting in on the forwards meetings and he’s obviously played the seven role with the Crusaders. He can also cover midfield, so there are a lot of moving parts, but he’s trained really well and been getting up to speed.”

New Zealand head into the Wales fixture looking to extend their unbeaten Nations Championship run, though the late injury setbacks to two of their most experienced backs will test the squad’s depth.