All Blacks release 12 players ahead of Rugby Championship
SQUAD UPDATE: All Black head coach Scott Robertson has released 12 players from his squad ahead of the upcoming Rugby Championship.
Those players are set to represent their provincial unions on Friday, August 2 and Saturday, August 3.
The players will be spread across six National Provincial Championship pre-season matches, five on Friday and one on Saturday.
Four players, David Havili, Will Jordan, Ethan Blackadder and Noah Hotham will play for Tasman against Southland in Christchurch on Friday, with the other eight players spread across matches in Taranaki, Wellington, Auckland, Canterbury and Northland.
Those eight players are Josh Lord, Sam Cane, Pasilio Tosi, Billy Proctor, Caleb Clarke, George Bell, Ofa Tu’ungafasi and Wallace Sititi.
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The All Blacks’ Rugby Championship squad will then assemble at the New Zealand Campus of Innovation and Sport (NZCIS) in Upper Hutt on Sunday, August 4 in preparation for the first Test of the tournament against Argentina in Wellington on August 10.
The All Blacks will face Los Pumas again a week later on August 17 in Auckland before they head to South Africa to face the Springboks in two Test matches.