VETERAN NEW ZEALAND fly-half Beauden Barrett was on Sunday ruled out of next weekend’s rematch against Australia, who will be boosted by the return of power forwards Will Skelton and Rob Valetini.
Barrett left the field in the first half of the 33-24 victory on Saturday in Auckland that saw New Zealand retain the Bledisloe Cup and stay in contention for the Rugby Championship with one round to go.
The 141-Test veteran suffered a shoulder injury which not only rules him out of Saturday’s Test in Perth, but also casts doubt over his availability for New Zealand’s northern hemisphere tour next month.
Assistant coach Jason Ryan said Damian McKenzie would likely start in Perth after replacing Barrett off the bench at Eden Park.
Prop Ethan de Groot will also miss the Test after failing a head injury assessment while wing Caleb Clarke (ankle) and lock Tupou Vaa’i (knee) are doubts.
“We’ve got a few bodies we need to look after,” Ryan said on Sunday.
“And it’s an opportunity to look at everyone in our squad too, potentially.
“We’ve got to go up a notch because what we’re learning in second Tests is that everyone gets better.”
Giant lock Skelton and dynamic back-row forward Valetini will boost the physicality of the Wallabies pack after both missed the Auckland clash.
Skelton has been in France to fulfil commitments with his La Rochelle club, while Valetini has overcome a calf injury.
Retired scrum-half Nic White will join up with the Wallabies squad in Perth to “help them prepare”, said Rugby Australia, but could now be in line to play after Tate McDermott limped off with a hamstring injury at Eden Park.
Uncertainty surrounds the fitness of Jake Gordon, who hasn’t played for more than two months, while the squad’s other scrum-half is Ryan Lonergan, who made his debut off the bench in Auckland.
If White takes the field, it will be the second time he has come out of retirement to help the Wallabies in two months.
The 35-year-old had originally announced the third Lions Test would be his last, only to return immediately for Australia’s Tests in South Africa because of injuries.
After starting four successive Rugby Championship Tests, White retired again following this month’s defeat to Argentina in Sydney.
Record-breaking Australian prop James Slipper said that this was his final year in the gold Wallabies shirt and hinted that next week’s Test against New Zealand could be his last.
Slipper became just the third player to reach the milestone of 150 Test appearances during the 33-24 loss in Auckland on Saturday, joining Alun Wyn Jones of Wales and New Zealand’s Sam Whitelock.
The 36-year-old said both Jones and Whitelock had sent him video messages, a gesture he described as “really special”.
“This will be the last year I’ll be playing, just whether that ends next week or on the spring (northern hemisphere) tour will still be confirmed,” Slipper said.
He said he would only join the squad for Australia’s northern hemisphere tour next month if it was deemed “best for the team”.
“There’s still a bit of water that needs to go under the bridge, so I won’t call it now,” Slipper said.
“It comes down to what’s best for the team. That’s probably what’s going to make my decision.”
Slipper said a fifth World Cup for him, when Australia host the 2027 edition, was “way too far away”.
The Wallabies hit rock bottom when they failed to get out of their pool at the 2023 World Cup, but Slipper said he would leave them in much better shape.
“The improvement we’ve seen over the last 18 months has been really positive for our group and for rugby in Australia,” Slipper said.
“We’re still just probably not getting as many results as we want, and consistent results, but in terms of the base of the game and what we want to see, we’re seeing it.”
Slipper said he would play Super Rugby next year with the ACT Brumbies, where another record is within sight.
He has played 197 Super Rugby matches for the Queensland Reds (103) and Brumbies (94) and needs just five more appearances to match the all-time record of 202 held by retired Canterbury Crusaders prop Wyatt Crockett.
