Read heads into Lions series cold
ALL Blacks captain Kieran Read is unlikely to play any rugby before the first Test in Auckland against the British and Irish Lions on June 24, as he recovers from a broken thumb.
The 31-year-old suffered the injury while playing for the Crusaders against the Cheetahs on April 29 and had surgery. He was told he would need six weeks to recover, which would puts his return date around June 10.
A Test against Samoa on June 16, at Eden Park was seen as an ideal way for Read to get some match fitness before the Lions series but he said this week the longer he had on the sidelines, the better.
“At the moment they are kind of saying you can’t use it for six weeks, which is a week before the Samoa game,” Read told New Zealand’s Radio Sport. “We’ll just have to see if I push it, or let things go before that first Test against the Lions.
“It’s the type of injury where you can push it if you want to, but that increases the risk of a re-break.
“They say that six weeks is a bit of risk, seven weeks is only a slight risk, eight weeks you are pretty much sweet. The risk decreases pretty quickly. It’s just a matter of how you want to operate.
“It’s a bone break so you’ve got to let it heal,” said Read.
“The fact is you don’t really know how it’s responding.
“We’ll X-ray it again and then it’s a return to play process. That gives me two weeks before the first Lions Test which should be plenty of time.”
Read, who also missed the first six weeks of Super Rugby as he recovered from wrist surgery, said he was still training while protecting his thumb and was not fazed about a lack of match fitness for the series-opener in Auckland against Warren Gatland’s team.
“In terms of match fitness I won’t have too much, to be honest, going into that first Test but I’ve done this gig a few times,” he added.
“I’ve got the confidence in myself that I can turn up and play at a high level. I’ll back myself and I’ll be good, ready to go.”
Read confirmed this week he had signed a contract extension with New Zealand Rugby until after the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan.
The decision by the Crusaders loose forward, who has won 97 All Blacks caps since his debut against Scotland in 2008, to remain in New Zealand until after the Japan World Cup was a boost for coach Steve Hansen’s planning.
He joins 15 other All Blacks who have committed until after the first World Cup to be held in Asia and Read said being elevated to the captaincy after Richie McCaw retired following the last global tournament had been a factor in his decision.
“Five or six years ago I might have looked overseas potentially after 2015, but circumstances now and being skipper, there’s a lot of work to be done with this All Blacks team and some awesome challenges ahead,” Read said.
“It’s good coin. I’m more than happy with what’s coming my way.
“The whole package is nice for the family and it’s great to be here in New Zealand.”
Meanwhile, New Zealand will remain vigilant for security threats around the British and Irish Lions tour in the wake of the terror attack in Manchester but there has been no evidence to suggest a heightened risk of attack, Prime Minister Bill English has said.
The Lions arrive for their 10-match rugby tour next week and, with memories of a similar 2015 attack in Paris that targeted numerous venues including the Stade de France during an international soccer match, English said officials in New Zealand were being cautious.
“Intelligence agencies are always monitoring for these kinds of attacks,” English told reporters. “There is no evidence of heightened risk of attack in New Zealand or around the Lions tour, but we will remain vigilant.”
The Lions begin their tour in Whangarei on June 3, against an invitational Provincial Barbarians selection– Reuters