By Liam Napier in Paris
All Blacks wing Mark Telea will miss this weekend’s Rugby World Cup quarter-final with Ireland after being stood down for disciplinary reasons.
It is understood Blues wing Telea breached team curfew, and the All Blacks have opted to drop him from their knockout match in Paris.
The Blues wing has claimed three tries in two World Cup appearances - two against France, one where he beat multiple defenders to finish against Italy.
“He breached the protocol. It was nothing major but enough to keep him out of selection this week,” All Blacks coach Ian Foster said.
“We still love him. He’s trained well. It happens. It is what it is. For us it’s pretty clean cut. I don’t really want to talk about it anymore. We’ve dealt with it as a team and moved on. We believe in what we stand for. It speaks volumes for the team that we’re willing to make that decision in this sort of week,” Foster added.
Leicester Fainga’anuku, who scored a hat-trick in the final pool match against Uruguay, will replace Telea on the left edge.
Three days before the 2011 World Cup quarter-final All Blacks outside backs Israel Dagg and Cory Jane went out drinking in Takapuna but neither player was suspended. Dagg was injured at the time but Jane produced a blinder in the 33-10 quarter-final victory over Argentina at Eden Park.
This week in Paris the other major selection talking points come on the bench where the All Blacks have preferred Finlay Christie over in-form Hurricanes halfback Cam Roigard.
Roigard is a surprising exclusion after impressing at this World Cup but, unlike Telea, Foster said the deputy halfback role was a selection decision.
“What would make you think it’s discipline? We felt it’s horses for courses for this particular game,” Foster said. “We think Finlay has got an edge defensively. We think there’s a lot of action likely to happen around the ruck defensively. We’ve been delighted with Cam’s form and in a different type of game it might’ve gone slightly differently but for this one we’ve gone for that.”
With starting props Ethan de Groot returning from his two-match suspension and Tyrel Lomax overcoming his medial ligament strain the All Blacks have opted for young Crusaders props Fletcher Newell and Tamaiti Williams over veterans Ofa Tuʻungafasi and Nepo Laulala.
“Yeah, tough,” Foster said of his propping selections. “We’ve got six props, three hookers, and we’re probably happy to start them all at the moment. Everyone is fit and healthy. We feel it’s the right mix. There’s probably a little bit of mobility and agility defensively is one catalyst in that. We feel the scrum is going well regardless of who goes in there. In the areas we are going to be challenged and we need to challenge Ireland we feel Fletcher and Tamaiti give us a little more in that space this week.”
Elsewhere in the loose forward trio Sam Cane is joined by Ardie Savea and Shannon Frizell for first time since the All Blacks’ 35-20 win over South Africa in Auckland. In the second-row Brodie Retallick and Scott Barrett, with Sam Whitelock moving to the bench.
“We are where we want to be,” Foster said. “World Cup quarter-finals are so exciting for many reasons, and we know the pressure they bring.
“We have had a solid week of preparation and know that it is now about trusting the work we have done and going out to play. We feel the massive support we have had from Kiwis both at home and here in France. We greatly appreciate it.”
“We have huge respect for Ireland who are number one in the world for a reason,” added Foster. “We are excited by the opportunity we have in front of us and expect to be tested in many ways. That is what World Cups are about.”
All Blacks squad
1 Ethan de Groot, 2 Codie Taylor, 3 Tyrel Lomax, 4 Brodie Retallick, 5 Scott Barrett, 6 Shannon Frizell, 7 Sam Cane (captain), 8 Ardie Savea, 9 Aaron Smith, 10 Richie Mo’unga, 11 Leicester Fainga’anuku, 12 Jordie Barrett, 13 Rieko Ioane, 14 Will Jordan, 15 Beauden Barrett. Reserves: 16 Dane Coles, 17 Tamaiti Williams, 18 Fletcher Newell, 19 Samuel Whitelock, 20 Dalton Papali’i, 21 Finlay Christie, 22 Damian McKenzie, 23 Anton Lienert-Brown.
Top-ranked Ireland is unchanged for Sunday’s game.
Wingers Mack Hansen and James Lowe are playing and reserve lock James Ryan isn’t.
Hansen (calf) and Lowe (eye) have shaken off minor injuries from the 36-14 win over Scotland last Sunday. Lowe scored a try early in a one-sided contest as Ireland topped Pool B with four out of four wins.
Ryan has not recovered in time from a wrist injury and was replaced on the bench by Joe McCarthy. Backs Robbie Henshaw and Keith Earls were also not ready this week.
Ireland: 15 Hugo Keenan, 14 Mack Hansen, 13 Garry Ringrose, 12 Bundee Aki, 11 James Lowe, 10 Jonathan Sexton (captain), 9 Jamison Gibson-Park; 8 Caelan Doris, 7 Josh van der Flier, 6 Peter O’Mahony, 5 Iain Henderson, 4 Tadhg Beirne, 3 Tadhg Furlong, 2 Dan Sheehan, 1 Andrew Porter. Reserves: 16 Ronan Kelleher, 17 Dave Kilcoyne, 18 Finlay Bealham, 19 Joe McCarthy, 20 Jack Conan, 21 Conor Murray, 22 Jack Crowley, 23 Jimmy O’Brien.
All Blacks v Ireland
8am, Sunday
Follow live updates: nzherald.co.nz
Listen to commentary: Join Elliott Smith on Newstalk ZB, Gold Sport and iHeartRadio, or catch the ACC on iHeartRadio or Hauraki
Get full coverage of the Rugby World Cup.
The former England winger opened up about his struggles post retirement.