All Blacks news: Barrett and Jordan injury doubts for Wales clash

All Blacks news from Murrayfield is dominated by two injury doubts before next weekend’s trip to Wales. Jordie Barrett and Will Jordan could both miss the Nations Championship meeting in Cardiff on Saturday. The pair were hurt during New Zealand’s 43-21 win over Scotland in Edinburgh.

Barrett was taken off for a head injury assessment and failed it. Jordan picked up a suspected hamstring problem in the second half. Head coach Dave Rennie said the squad would have more clarity on both players later in the week.

All Blacks news: Barrett and Jordan injury update

Barrett went off after a clash with Scotland replacement Blair Kinghorn. Reuters’ post-match report, carried by The Straits Times, quoted Rennie on the centre’s situation. “Jordie failed his HIA, so it’s not sure whether he’ll be available this week, but we’ll get a bit of clarity later,” the coach said.

Rennie was equally cautious about Jordan. The wing is the All Blacks’ leading all-time try-scorer, so any absence would be a big loss. “He might have tweaked a hamstring,” Rennie said. “We’ll assess that, and I’m not sure of the severity of it.”

A failed head injury assessment means a player must complete return-to-play protocols before he can be considered again. New Zealand have not given a timeline for either player. Their availability for Cardiff remains unconfirmed.

New Zealand already short of key players

The two doubts add to an absence list that was already significant. New Zealand travelled for their four-match November programme in Britain without several key players. The most notable name missing is loose forward Ardie Savea.

That did not stop the tourists at Murrayfield. Our Scotland 21-43 New Zealand match report shows how they scored 19 unanswered points after half-time. Ewan Ashman’s first-half hat-trick had kept Scotland within 24-21 at the break.

All Blacks news: injury doubts after Murrayfield

Player	Issue	Status
Jordie Barrett	Failed head injury assessment after a clash with Blair Kinghorn	Doubt for Wales
Will Jordan	Suspected hamstring injury in the second half	Doubt for Wales, severity unknown
Ardie Savea	Not part of the November tour	Unavailable

Rennie reflects on an ill-disciplined first half

Rennie was not entirely happy with the performance despite the seven-try win. Wallace Sititi and Peter Lakai were both shown yellow cards before half-time. “It was an ill-disciplined first half with a couple of yellow cards,” Rennie said.

“You give Scotland opportunities near finish zone, they’re going to hit you, but we were better in the second half,” he added. The coach explained that New Zealand changed their kicking approach after the restart. He said they went to a contestable kick game to limit Scotland’s counter-attack and dominated territory better.

Rennie also pointed to missed chances. “You just saw us lose our shape a couple of times, and from turnover we had two or three really gilt-edge opportunities that we spilt,” he said. Before the game, our Scotland vs New Zealand preview set out the All Blacks’ unbeaten record in the fixture.

Wales next for the All Blacks in Cardiff

Wales head into the game after a 28-21 win over Japan on Saturday. Josh Adams scored twice, with Archie Griffin and Louis Rees-Zammit also crossing. Our Wales 28-21 Japan match report has the full scoring sequence from that game.

New Zealand will want news on Barrett and Jordan early in the week. Selection for Cardiff should make their status clear. Until then, both players are doubts rather than confirmed absences. For the latest results, team news and reaction, follow our international rugby coverage.