New Zealand have been bolstered for the World Cup quarter-final against Ireland on Saturday after it was confirmed that tighthead prop Tyrel Lomax is available for selection.
Lomax was a doubt for Saturday’s playoff in Paris after being forced off just eight minutes into New Zealand’s 11-try victory over Uruguay last Thursday.
The Hurricanes prop made his first start of the tournament against Uruguay but limped off before the 10-minute mark and looked dejected on the bench.
However, All Blacks coach Jason Ryan provided a positive update when asked about Lomax’s availability for the quarter-final.
“Yeah he’s trained really well today, got through what he needed to and definitely he will be considered for selection,” Ryan said.
“If you’re heading to a final, which this is, it’s important you have got the luxury of picking from a squad that is fully available which is what we want to be.
“There are always going to get niggles but it’s great in this player’s point of view and in regards to Lowy [Lomax] it’s great he has got through today.
“We have a pretty high intensive training on Thursday so he’ll have to tick that off as well.”
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The All Blacks have taken a different approach to Ireland’s squad management by rotating players through their pool stage fixtures, while Ireland stuck with a similar starting lineup for all four games.
“We like to keep everyone hungry. I think it is important that everyone is competing in training and we have given everyone a crack in this World Cup. We are really clear on who our starting lineup is and it is full steam ahead for this final.
“This is where you want to be. It’s where the players want to be, in a final. It’s where you want to be as a coach and it’s where the All Blacks want to be. That is an opportunity we are looking forward to against the number one team in the world.”
Photo: Ian Kington / AFP