Anton Lienert-Brown will miss the first two All Blacks tests of the year after being suspended for his dangerous tackle in the Super Rugby final.
The Sanzaar foul play review committee handed Lienert-Brown a three-week suspension on Tuesday for his tackle on Crusaders wing Dallas McLeod in Saturday’s Super Rugby final in Hamilton.
Lienert-Brown was fortunate to escape with a yellow card at the time, with Sanzaar later determining the incident met the red card threshold. McLeod eventually left the field and failed his HIA as a result of the head clash.
At this stage Lienert-Brown is suspended through to July 29 which rules him out of the All Blacks tests against Argentina in Mendoza, the Springboks at Mt Smart Stadium and the opening Bledisloe Cup assignment at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
But upon completing the World Rugby Coaching Intervention Programme, Lienert-Brown is likely to receive a further one-week reduction which should see him available to return against the Wallabies in Melbourne.