Woodcock out of Championship
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Tony Woodcock is set to undergo shoulder surgery, potentially ruling him out of the upcoming Rugby Championship.
The most experienced All Blacks prop in history has had a continuing shoulder issue of late and is being given every chance to recover in time – as unlikely as it may be.
Should the Blues prop be ruled out of the tournament opener, Wyatt Crockett or Ben Franks will likely start against the Wallabies.
Assistant coach Ian Foster said they would wait and see for now.
"We don't want anyone to go down injured but it's a fact of life," Foster said
"Tony has been very durable for us and we're going to give him a little window to see if it does come right.
"It represents another opportunity. Wyatt and Ben have been in the squad a long time and have got a lot of experience. They'll be jumping out of their skin."
With Crusaders prop Joe Moody likely to cover for the 110-Test veteran if ruled out of the squad, head coach Steve Hansen said that they wouldn’t hesitate to put Woodcock under the surgeon’s knife.
"His shoulder is pretty loose so we'll just see what happens over the next seven days and then make a decision," the All Blacks coach said.
"From there, there is no point in mucking around if it's not going to be right. We may as well get it operated on."
"He will get his first pre-season of some note for twelve years [if he has the surgery] so there is some positives in it."
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