Putting his medical hat on, Blues coach Leon MacDonald said with tongue firmly in cheek on Saturday, skipper Dalton Papalii would be back training this week, and there’s no doubt his Crusaders counterpart Scott Robertson would be feeling the same about his own All Black loose forward Ethan Blackadder.
Alas for the in-form players, and indeed their coaches and teams, the pair are unlikely to have any further involvement in the Super Rugby Pacific playoffs, with their All Blacks plans next month now also in doubt.
It is a huge blow for them and it will have repercussions for how All Blacks coach Ian Foster sets up his back-row trio against Ireland because both Papalii and Blackadder would have been integral parts of the puzzle.
They are both muscular, busy players - which will be important against an Irish team who have twice dominated the All Black pack recently - and both can play all three loose forward positions.
Papalii has had pundits questioning whether skipper Sam Cane can hold on to the black No.7 jersey, while Blackadder has also recently started at No.7 for the Crusaders, making an extremely good fist of it with his workrate, especially on defence. He's probably the most adaptable of the lot.
They are both also taller than 1.9m, an important lineout factor when considering the ball-winning abilities of the shorter Cane and Ardie Savea.
The inspirational Papalii had emergency appendix surgery last week and his involvement with the team now as they eye a first full championship victory since 2003 is likely to be confined to a support role.
“Obviously we want him back as soon as possible but we’ll be guided by the doctors and I don’t know when that will be, unfortunately,” MacDonald said.
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MacDonald confirmed Papalii spoke to the team before they ran out on to the Eden Park pitch to beat the Highlanders 35-6 in their quarter-final to set up a semifinal date with the Brumbies.
Scans revealed that Blackadder had dislocated his shoulder in the Crusaders’ 37-15 victory over the Reds in Christchurch.
The Crusaders said on Monday that a return-to-play time frame would not be known for several weeks.
Foster will name his squad for the three-test series against Ireland in Auckland next Monday.
Papalii may be included in case he’s a chance to play a Test, but Blackadder’s hopes appear slim.
Cane, who has been sidelined at the Chiefs for the past two weeks due to a knee injury but is a possibility to be available for their semifinal against the Crusaders in Christchurch on Friday, and Ardie Savea are definite inclusions if fit, with Blues pair Hoskins Sotutu and Ardie Savea similarly likely given their recent form and involvement with the All Blacks last year.
Chiefs loose forward Luke Jacobson is a good possibility also, but so too now is Highlanders 24-year-old Marino Mikaele-Tu’u.
Mikaele-Tu’u has been a standout for what was a below-par Highlanders team this season, and, alongside halfback Folau Fakatava, was his side’s best attacking weapon against the Blues in their quarter-final defeat.
Foster is likely to want six loose forwards in his squad and may want to take a closer look at Mikaele-Tu’u, a dynamic ball carrier with excellent attacking instincts.
Fellow Highlander Shannon Frizell made his comeback from injury via the reserves bench against the Blues last Saturday but Foster may think Frizell has made his run too late, and besides which he’s been in the All Black environment since 2018 without truly pushing on.
Should neither Papalii nor Blackadder be available for the first Test against Ireland at Eden Park on July 2, Akira Ioane is a good chance to wear the No.6 jersey alongside Cane and Savea.
The former pair would probably be a better fit to combat Ireland’s physicality, but Ioane has made good strides in this area and impressed at times with his attitude last year – especially during the Rugby Championship.
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