Spencer gets farewell wish to play against Lions

Carlos Spencer finds himself in demand from the Maori selectors. Picture / The Aucklander

Carlos Spencer will take his twinkling feet on to a New Zealand rugby field one last time, as part of the Maori team against the Lions next month.

The first five-eighth, who is capable of the dazzling and the daft in the space of a few seconds, was last night confirmed as part of the Maori selectors' plans for the high-profile game in Hamilton on June 11 before he heads off to his new life at English premier-division club Northampton.

Spencer's New Zealand career, which included 35 tests, was heading for a damp-squib finish. Unable to regain a starting place since he was dropped for the Blues' round-six game against the Brumbies on April 2, he then fractured a cheekbone.

Initially, the Maori selectors - Matt Te Pou, Hika Reid, Stu Forster and Donny Stevenson - wanted players to be available for a two-match operation: a game in Fiji followed by the Lions.

Spencer wants to play the Martin Johnson farewell match at Twickenham on June 4. If you live in the Southern Hemisphere, that's the Jonah Lomu comeback match.

The Fiji-Maori game is in Suva on June 3, and not even the mercurial Spencer could be in two places at once.

But Te Pou said last night the selectors wanted Spencer in Hamilton and had adopted a flexible view.

"We were absolutely keen that he be available for both games," Te Pou said. "It would have been great to have him in Fiji. But it's clear to us Carlos would like to support his mate Jonah. So we had to make a call.

"Flexibility had to be uppermost. I spoke to the other selectors, they all agreed and we made the call."

Spencer, who played the last of his nine games for the Maori in 2002, was helped by the fact he's held in high regard by Te Pou and his panel, who have a wealth of talent available for the Lions match as they'll get first dibs on All Blacks.

"He's a class player. We're just rapt to have him available," Te Pou added.

"And when you ask the question, does he give us a great chance against the Lions, the answer is yes."

Te Pou is prepared to live with the likelihood of Spencer not joining the Maori squad until the Tuesday, leaving just three full days of training for the Lions match.

Te Pou will name the Maori squad for Fiji on May 23, the same day the All Black trial teams for the June 3 match in Napier are revealed. He intends naming the side for the Lions game on June 4.

Te Pou said it was an exciting time for Maori rugby as it is rare for the country's best players to be free to play for the Maori. That means some tough choices lie ahead. "I've been waiting for a headache like this for a long time."