Curtis Rona is coming home early from the England tour.
The Kiwis winger will leave tomorrow, given permission to return to New Zealand as his wife is due to give birth later this week.
Despite a breakthrough NRL season - he was second in the try scoring charts - Rona has yet to take the field on this tour. He was unlikely to play in the series deciding third test in Wigan either - barring an injury to incumbents Shaun-Kenny-Dowall or Jason Nightingale and for this reason coach Stephen Kearney has given his blessing to the early departure.
With his child due during the middle of the tour, it was always going to be a tough call to come on the trip.
"It was a really hard decision," Rona told the New Zealand Herald earlier in the trip. "But an opportunity to represent your country doesn't come along very often, so you have to take it. And my wife will be well supported by family."
