Scott Robertson’s injury crisis at scrumhalf appears to have eased somewhat, with his first-choice No 9 making his comeback this weekend.
Cam Roigard is now back in the frame for New Zealand after seven weeks out, handing the All Blacks a timely boost before their Rugby Championship showdown with Australia.
READ: All Blacks running out of nines
The 24-year-old scrummie fractured his right foot during July’s series win over France, ruling him out of the first four rounds of the Rugby Championship. But he will make his comeback on Saturday, named on the bench for Counties Manukau in their must-win NPC clash against Auckland.
Roigard is one of 13 All Blacks released to provincial duty, with Caleb Clarke and Rieko Ioane set to feature for Auckland.
The timing could not be better for Robertson. New Zealand have already started Roigard, Cortez Ratima, Finlay Christie, and Noah Hotham in the No 9 jersey, while Kyle Preston made his Test debut off the bench in their 24-17 win over the Springboks at Eden Park.
With Ratima sidelined by a rib problem and Hotham out with a fractured fibula, Roigard is likely to be fast-tracked back into the Test mix should he come through unscathed against Auckland.
“It doesn’t feel like I’ve been out long, but it’s been seven weeks and I’m just excited to get back into rugby,” Roigard said.
“Hopefully I can get some flowing footy, make a few tackles and test the lungs again. I just want to get back out there.”
MORE: All Blacks’ worst loss not that painful
The All Blacks currently sit third on the Rugby Championship table with 10 points, one behind the Wallabies and level with the Springboks, with Argentina lurking on nine. Roigard stressed consistency would be key in the run-in.
“The challenge now is stacking performances, not just winning one week and dropping the next. The Rugby Championship is so tight, so that could be the difference.”
For now, though, Roigard is focused only on getting through his provincial return.
“I just want to get through this weekend,” he said.
“Then we’ll have the conversation about whether I’m available for the All Blacks again.”
Photo by Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images
The post Star All Blacks scrummie makes comeback appeared first on SA Rugby magazine.