NZR give Shields green light

New Zealand Rugby will ‘‘by special exception’’ allow Brad Shields to be selected for England this month.

Shields was expected to be selected in England’s squad, to be named last night, for their June series against the Springboks in South Africa.

NZR said Shields, the Hurricanes captain, will be released from the obligations of his contract.

The 27-year-old loose forward, who will finish this Super Rugby season with the Hurricanes before leaving New Zealand, is eligible to play for England through his English parents.

He confirmed last November that he was moving to England this year, having signed a deal with Wasps, and later revealed that being constantly overlooked by the All Blacks was a contributing factor.

NZR head of professional rugby Chris Lendrum said they believed there were clear legal grounds for the NZR to decline a release request made by Shields’ agent and the RFU, but they considered the circumstances in this case to be exceptional.

‘‘Our contract agreement requires Brad to be available for only New Zealand teams until the end of his term, which expires at the end of this year’s Super Rugby season,’’ Lendrum said in a statement..

‘‘Having said that, Brad has been an exceptional leader inside the Hurricanes environment and a loyal servant to New Zealand Rugby.

‘‘We have taken some time to carefully work through the complexities of this request, to ensure that we gave appropriate consideration to his specific circumstances. In the end, we are happy with the terms of his temporary release.’’