Ngatai may return, Bird out
The Chiefs could welcome back cocaptain Charlie Ngatai for Friday’s Super Rugby clash with the Highlanders in Hamilton, but they have had yet another player ruled out for the season, with Dominic Bird to go under the knife.
The former All Blacks lock injured a shoulder in the seasonopener against the Crusaders in Christchurch and had since been weighing up options with his specialist, but coach Colin Cooper said prior to his team’s training yesterday that the 26-year-old has now opted for surgery, ruling him out of the rest of the campaign.
Bird is the fifth Chiefs player to be out for the season, after utility back Tim Nanai-Williams (shoulder), prop Atu Moli (quad haematoma) and fellow locking options Mitchell Brown (knee) and Fin Hoeata (shoulder).
Cooper is still deciding on second row replacements after the recent hits to the locking stocks, but said Waikato’s Sam Caird and Bay of Plenty’s Baden Wardlaw were training with the team.
There was better news on the injury front for some other squad members, with Ngatai back into contention following the grade two MCL knee injury he suffered against the Crusaders.
‘‘Charlie could be this week, he could be next week, we’re just going to see how he progresses during the week,’’ Cooper said of the man who was making the move from the midfield to be the team’s first-choice fullback this year.
Midfielder Alex Nankivell is coming back into the selection frame following an appendix issue that had hospitalised him, having made a return via club rugby on Saturday.
Outside back Levi Aumua (shoulder and hip) had done likewise, midfielder Regan Verney (groin) is to do the same this weekend or next, while Cooper said loosehead props Kane Hames (illness) and Mitchell Graham (leg) are still moment’’.
But the potential return of Ngatai will be a boon. The 26-yearold is itching to go, admitting that being stuck on the sidelines had added extra motivation in this his last season before he heads to French club Lyon, even if the break gave him a chance to organise a few logistics for the move.
‘‘It does make you motivated, you come to training every day and you see the boys training the house down, and you just want to be involved as much as you can,’’ he said.
With leg work four times a week, strengthening the muscles around the knee, it was then into straight line running and slowly into change of direction movements, with yesterday being Ngatai’s first training back with the team. He will also have tomorrow’s run to prove his fitness.
‘‘It’s feeling quite good actually,’’ he said of the knee, rating himself a reasonable chance of being back on the park against the Highlanders.
‘‘I’m certainly keen to play again. Depending how these trainings go this week, depending on what the coaches and physios say. They’ve sort of got to try and put the brakes on and do what’s best for you.’’
Whether it’s this weekend or the following that Ngatai returns, either way it will be in one of those anticipated all-Kiwi matchups, with the Chiefs now facing three derbies in a row.
Coming off their franchiserecord 61-10 win over the Sunwolves in Tokyo, they are set for a particularly sterner challenge back home against the Highlanders, and will have the added motivation of the game being co-captain Sam Cane’s 100th for the Chiefs.
‘‘It’s a special moment, so certainly there’ll be no excuses for us,’’ Cooper said. ‘‘I’m looking forward to the week, and how we build for what will be a huge game for us.’’