Carter just easing his way back in to position

If everything goes to plan on Sunday, Daniel Carter will return in an All Black jersey.

The coaches want to give him at least 20 minutes. Preferably 30. They are not expecting miracles. Carter isn't either and nor should anyone else.

If, and most likely, when Carter gets on he'll be looking to do nothing more than ease his way into the test arena.

He's fully fit. He's not suffering any nerve pain and has been running freely at training.

But he has played only 40 minutes since he broke his leg in early August. And before that, he'd managed only a handful of games since returning from his sabbatical.

It would be foolish to believe he can set the world on fire on his first outing. And just as foolish to then say, when he doesn't, that he's not the player he used to be.

Judgment on that will have to wait. Wait for Carter to get back into the groove and get himself match-fit.

He plays in a position where so much is about timing, feel and vision. Even a great such as himself needs a little bit of time in the saddle for the old instincts to sharpen.

Even Carter needs time to get into his flow and find his rhythm. Soldier Field will be a start. Hopefully.

It should enable him, if nothing else, to forget about his leg entirely.

Inevitably, when any player returns from a serious injury, they carry an element of trepidation about whether they are truly fixed. They worry, somewhere in the back of their mind, that the damaged part won't handle the collisions.

Getting rid of that mental clutter is an important step and so too will be getting through the test without any ramifications.

It has been a while since Carter managed to get through any game of rugby without health consequences.

So for the moment, it is baby steps, but Carter has shown an uncanny ability over the years to astound.