Mo'unga back as Rennie lists Fainga'anuku among loose forwards for northern tour
Dave Rennie has brought Richie Mo'unga back and listed Leicester Fainga'anuku as a loose forward in his 36-man All Blacks squad for the Nations Championship tour of Scotland, Wales and England. He named the squad after Canterbury beat Northland in Monday's NPC final.
Codie Taylor, who has played more than 100 Tests, will captain the side in the United Kingdom while Ardie Savea is out with a shoulder injury, RugbyPass reported. The squad meets in Auckland on Tuesday morning and flies to the UK on Thursday. The first Test is against Scotland at Murrayfield at 3:10am NZDT on 8 November.
Mo'unga missed both Bledisloe Cup Tests with a calf injury. He is listed at first five-eighth with Damian McKenzie, who has 83 Tests, and Josh Jacomb of the Chiefs and Taranaki, who is yet to play a Test. Beauden Barrett is also in the squad with 147 caps. All three Barrett brothers made it, after Scott Barrett's standout games against Australia on his return.
Fainga'anuku's selection is the bigger talking point. He broke his leg and suffered a high ankle sprain in the Crusaders' semi-final loss to the Chiefs in July, the Otago Daily Times reported. He came back for Tasman in the NPC, and this is his first All Blacks squad of the year. Across his 12 Tests he has usually played in the outside backs or the midfield. Now he is one of six loose forwards, with Anton Segner, Ethan Blackadder, Wallace Sititi, Peter Lakai and Christian Lio-Willie, who is also in his first squad of the year.
The ODT said Fainga'anuku got his chance because Shannon Frizell has a knee injury and Simon Parker is unavailable for personal reasons.
Injuries forced changes in the front row too. Samisoni Taukei'aho has a calf injury, so George Bell, a hooker from the NPC-winning Canterbury side, comes in as third hooker. With Tyrel Lomax out with a neck injury, Highlanders prop Saula Ma'u is the third specialist tighthead. Ma'u and Jacomb are the only players in the squad who could make their debuts on tour.
Two more Canterbury players were picked over established names. RugbyPass reported that Jamie Hannah was chosen ahead of Sam Darry, and Chay Fihaki ahead of Emoni Narawa. Hannah played in Monday's final. Both Hannah and Ma'u have been called in as injury cover this year.
"This is a really strong squad we have selected," Rennie said in a statement reported by RugbyPass. "It's great to officially welcome George, Saula, Leicester, Christian, Jamie and Chay back into the squad."
Eight players are back from injury: Segner, Blackadder, Jordie Barrett, Mo'unga, Anton Lienert-Brown, Quinn Tupaea, Asafo Aumua and Fehi Fineanganofo.
Nine are still out: Taukei'aho (calf), Frizell (knee), Lomax (neck), Leroy Carter (ankle), Ruben Love (ankle), Savea (shoulder), Luke Jacobson (elbow), Caleb Clarke (shoulder) and Ollie Norris (knee).
The All Blacks go north on the back of two wins over the Wallabies. They kept the Bledisloe Cup with a big win at Eden Park, then won again in Sydney a week later.
"Playing Scotland, Wales and England on consecutive weekends is a tough assignment," Rennie said. "These are all proud rugby nations with passionate home crowds. We will embrace the challenge and the opportunity to build on our Bledisloe Cup performances."
After Murrayfield, New Zealand play Wales at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff on 15 November and England at Allianz Stadium in London on 22 November. Both games kick off at 3:10am NZDT.
Those three results count towards the Nations Championship standings before Finals Weekend in London from 28 to 30 November. In the finals double-headers, each Southern Hemisphere team plays the Northern Hemisphere team that finishes in the same place on its table. The Championship decider is on 30 November.