Shamed Cruden is back

AARON CRUDEN will start at fly-half for New Zealand at Twickenham tomorrow less than two months after a missed flight following a late-night drinking session put his All Blacks career in jeopardy. Cruden, who yesterday admitted to feeling ‘nervous and apprehensive’ about his reintegration into the squad, established himself as first-choice No 10 in the absence of the injured Dan Carter. But he was axed by head coach Steve Hansen for New Zealand’s final two Rugby Championship games in Argentina and South Africa as pictures emerged of him drinking at a bar in Auckland the night before the All Blacks were due to leave for Buenos Aires. Cruden missed the assembly time for the departure and Hansen announced he had been dropped on arrival in Argentina. But Cruden has now been chosen ahead of Beauden Barrett at Twickenham. ‘I wasn’t expecting it but when I got named I was really happy,’ said Cruden, 25. ‘It’s pretty hard watching at home, the team you love playing for and the guys you love playing with. I know I stuffed up and I’ll be working hard over these next couple of weeks, and have already done so since I’ve been back in the environment, to earn back the respect that I lost, not only to the people in this team but the rugby fans back home.’ Hansen added: ‘Our team is like a family. If one of the members mucks up, you don’t stop loving them. You just don’t like what they did.’ Carter played for 30 minutes against the United States last week — three months after breaking his leg — but this game comes too soon for him.