All Blacks: Smith back, Bird and Vito return home

By Patrick McKendry in Cardiff

NZ Herald·

16 Nov, 2014 08:42 PM2 mins to read

Thank goodness for the All Black bench who swooped into save a day that most definitely needed to be saved. If the likes of Julian Savea, Dane Coles and Sonny Bill Williams had been hoping to dander on in the final quarter and have a bit of glory run, they were sorely disappointed. Instead, they were thrust into action on 55 minutes and told to sort out a performance that couldn't have been said to be unravelling as barely a stitch was ever sown.

All Blacks midfielder Conrad Smith has returned to the squad after his brief return to New Zealand for personal reasons, with loose forward Victor Vito and lock Dominic Bird going the other way after playing in their team's 24-16 victory over Scotland at Murrayfield.

Smith was due to join the squad in Cardiff today after taking the train from London Paddington following his long-haul flight from New Zealand, coach Steve Hansen said.

Vito has returned due to a calf injury suffered during last night's match, with Bird, who also started the test, now not needed following the return from a shoulder injury of Brodie Retallick. Patrick Tuipulotu's recovery from his own shoulder problem has also helped squeeze Bird out.

The starting locks for Sunday's test at the Millennium Stadium are likely to be Retallick and Sam Whitelock, with Tuipulotu, Jeremy Thrush or Luke Romano providing back up.

"He [Vito] is disappointed," Hansen said. "He waited a long time to get that opportunity after being injured during the June series and to be injured again is pretty disappointing so Super Rugby is going to be important for him."

Hansen agreed first-five Dan Carter was rusty in his comeback test at Murrayfield. With Carter, Aaron Cruden, Beauden Barrett and Colin Slade all fit, the No10 jersey is among the most hotly contested for all for the All Blacks' final test of the year.

"The hardest thing about it is which ones do we leave out because we've got four really good ones and they're all in good form. Obviously Dan is behind the eight ball with game time, but he's a world class player. Crudes has proven that he can do the job and Barrett and Slade have both been very, very good so it will be a matter of who we leave out rather than who we have to put in."

Hansen said of Wales, who struggled to a 17-13 win over Fiji at the Millennium Stadium yesterday: "They've definitely got their eye on this game and you could tell that by the way they played Fiji."