Leroy Carter injury rules All Blacks wing out of northern hemisphere tour

Leroy Carter has had surgery on his ankle and will not travel with the All Blacks on their end-of-year tour of the northern hemisphere. On Monday 19 October the wing became the latest name on the list of players staying home.

Carter picked up the injury as he scored in New Zealand's 50-19 win over Australia in the first Bledisloe Cup Test at Eden Park.

His absence takes some of the shine off a strong fortnight for the side. The All Blacks completed the series with a 43-21 win in Sydney on Saturday 17 October, sweeping the Bledisloe Cup despite a disrupted build-up. TimesLIVE reported that they ran in six first-half tries at Stadium Australia, even though Jordie Barrett was ruled out before kickoff and Quinn Tupaea went off early with concussion.

More injury concerns after Sydney

Carter may not be the only player missing. Loose forward Shannon Frizell (knee) and hooker Samisoni Taukei'aho (calf) were both hurt in the Sydney Test, and it is not yet confirmed whether they will be available.

Dave Rennie believes the squad can handle the absences. "We’ve used 50-odd players this year, creating depth and competition for places. We’re missing a few influential players but other guys step up," he said.

From Springbok setbacks to the tour

The two Bledisloe wins followed a hard spell for the team. Before the series, Rennie's All Blacks lost three Tests in a row to the Springboks on the Greatest Rivalry Series tour of South Africa. "We had an honest look at ourselves after the Greatest Rivalry," Codie Taylor said.

The tour builds to the final Nations Championship Tests, with New Zealand facing Wales in Cardiff on Saturday 14 November and England in London on Saturday 21 November. All of it comes with the World Cup a year away, and Australia hosting it.