KEY POINTS:
Canterbury coach Rob Penney has lashed out at the NZRU over the unavailability of Dan Carter for tonight's national championship final.
Carter and North Harbour prop Tony Woodcock were the only fully fit All Blacks not to return to the national championship following the Tri-Nations. Carter instead was granted dispensation to carry out promotional duties in Europe ahead of his forthcoming sabbatical with Perpignan.
While his All Blacks teammates returned to the grind of provincial rugby for the closing stages of the competition, Carter was spotted attending catwalk displays at Fashion Week and recently opened his own clothing store in Auckland.
Penney's ire was further provoked when Carter turned out for the shadow All Blacks against a Blues trial selection on Wednesday. "I'm really disappointed," Penney told Radio Sport yesterday in what was a rare display of dissension from a provincial coach. "I don't think it has been handled overly well. Let's hope that these situations don't become too common because I don't think it's good for the game."
Ali Williams and Leon MacDonald were also excused provincial duty because of injuries but the availability of All Blacks captain Richie McCaw, who will start in tonight's final for Canterbury, made Carter's absence even more inexplicable, Penney said.
"I would suspect that if anyone has an issue with over work it is Richie, with his captaincy role with the All Blacks and also the position he plays. But we just have to move on. The decision has been made."
Without Carter, Canterbury head into tonight's match with 21-year-old rookie Colin Slade at first five-eighths. Slade has been one of the finds of the competition and Penney said he had full faith in him to do the job.
"We have got a little bit of depth there but it would have been great to have the world's best player playing in the premier competition of New Zealand rugby ... "
