Mystery illness plagues Christie
If only the Highlanders knew what was wrong with flanker Shane Christie.
The loose forward is battling a mystery illness, which has left the franchise’s medical team and coach Tony Brown puzzled ahead of their season opener against the Chiefs in Dunedin.
Christie, who co-captained the team with fullback Ben Smith last year, wasn’t sighted during the pre-season and won’t feature under the roof tomorrow night.
‘‘No, still not sure. It’s a bit frustrating for him,’’ Brown said when asked if the team had got to the bottom of Christie’s absence.
‘‘We just have to wait and see on that one. We’ve got a few specialists that are checking him out.
‘‘It could be anything. We’ll have to wait until we get a bit more clarity about what’s happened there.’’
Asked for more detail and whether it was a case of Christie not feeling well, Brown said he did not know.
Christie, who has missed his fair share of games through injury since joining the team in 2014, is one of 10
Highlanders unavailable for the first game due to injury.
Fellow loose forwards Dan Pryor (knee) and Luke Whitelock (shoulder) are also in the casualty ward, leaving James Lentjes and Gareth Evans to start on the flanks against the Chiefs.
All Black Liam Squire will start at No 8, while Elliot Dixon – the only Highlanders All Black not starting – will provide cover off the bench.
‘‘We just found that our All Blacks are just a little bit underdone,’’ Brown said regarding his decision not to start Dixon.
‘‘Gareth has had a great pre-season, he’s really fit and ready to go and he deserves the opportunity.’’
Pivots Marty Banks and Hayden Parker, midfielder Tei Walden, hooker Ash Dixon, front rowers Aki Seiuli and Greg Pleasants-tate, and winger Patrick Osborne are the other injured players.
Not including Parker’s season-ending knee injury, Dixon’s back injury is the most serious, with Brown confirming he probably won’t be available for another six to eight weeks.
Osborne (back strain) is expected to play for the Highlanders development XV against the Crusaders Knights on Saturday, while the rest of the players are expected to be out for between one and five weeks with various niggles.