All Black hooker George Bell will return to New Zealand for four to six weeks of rehabilitation after suffering a calf strain in Cape Town.
This forced a squad call-up for Taranaki and Blues hooker Bradley Slater.
New Zealand coach Dave Rennie expressed disappointment for Bell, who faced injury setbacks previously, and acknowledged the pressure of the upcoming Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry tour, which opens against the Stormers and is framed as a critical test in the safari in the Republic.
Bell suffered the calf strain during training in Cape Town on Sunday.
\”We are all gutted for George, to be ruled out of the tour so early,” Rennie said.
“He’s had a frustrating past few months with injury so it’s a real blow for him to have injured his calf again.
We look forward to seeing him return via the NPC and put himself in a position to push for All Blacks selection later in the year.”
