All Blacks call Crusaders utility into squad before Bledisloe II

Crusaders outside back Chay Fihaki has been called into All Blacks camp for the first time ahead of this weekend’s Bledisloe Cup Test in Wellington. Cam Roigard is also back with the squad as the halfback continues to chip away on his injury rehab.

On Monday, the All Blacks announced on social media that the pair had both entered the All Blacks’ inner sanctum. Roigard is not in the mix to play on Saturday evening at Sky Stadium, with the 23-year-old instead aiming for a return with Counties Manukau early next month.

Fihaki, 23, joins the squad as injury cover following a knee injury to midfielder Jordie Barrett. Barrett was replaced at half-time during last weekend’s 31-28 at Accor Stadium and the utility was later seen in a knee brace at Sydney’s International Airport on Sunday.

Crusaders flyer Fihaki debuted for the Christchurch-based Super Rugby outfit four years ago but really came of age during this year’s campaign. With the then defending champions ushering in a new era under coach Rob Penney, Fihaki started 12 of 14 appearances.

Fihaki was primary used as a fullback by coach Penney but he did make four consecutive starting appearances on the right wing to round out the season. The Crusader was rewarded for a breakout campaign after being included in the Barbarian’s squad to play Fiji.

With the Barbarians, Fihaki started at fullback and played for the entire 80 minutes. Fihaki kicked four conversions in the 45-32 win at London’s Twickenham Stadium – which has since been renamed to Allianz Stadium.

More recently, Fihaki has started all eight matches for Canterbury this season, which included a two-try performance in last weekend’s win over Counties Manukau. Fihaki has played the entire 80 in all but two of those matches for the Cantabrians this season.

In the All Blacks, Anton Lienert-Brown and David Havili would likely be considered the leading candidates to replace Barrett in the No. 12 jumper. Harry Plummer, who debuted in the Sydney Test, is another option for coach Scott Robertson.

The All Blacks have already wrapped up the Bledisloe Cup for another year with the three-point win over the Wallabies. But, fans will want to see another strong performance from the men in black in their final home Test of the year – heading off on their end-of-year tour shortly.