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Blues teammates Anthony Tuitavake and Rudi Wulf may be the greatest beneficiaries of Joe Rokocoko's unusual wrist injury which has removed him from the rest of the Super 14, the initial All Black tests and perhaps the Tri-Nations series.
Rokocoko will have surgery this week to repair a
ruptured ligament which holds the small bones in place in his right wrist. The wing will have his arm in a cast for two months and the Blues doctor, Stephen Kara, explained that rehabilitation would then take between one and two months before Rokocoko could return to rugby.
His absence with the overseas departures of Doug Howlett and Rico Gear has created unlikely vacancies on the wing for the opening June internationals against Ireland and England before the July start of the Tri-Nations.
Chiefs speedster Sitiveni Sivivatu will be a favourite, while teammate Lelia Masaga has shown some extraordinary flair this season like the Highlanders Fetu'u Vainikolo, though both would be a huge gamble in the more disciplined test arena.
Those who were picked by the national selectors last year for the Junior All Blacks should have the greatest credentials for promotion. Tuitavake and Wulf were both in that group with two-test All Black Scott Hamilton and Ma'a Nonu.
The All Black panel have not been constrained by selection convention and they could shift Isaia Toeava to the wing, use Mils Muliaina there as they have in several seasons or take a serious punt with thediverting rugby package that is Victor Vito.
Vito is a mature footballer for a 20-year-old, an automatic loose forward selection for New Zealand age sides who played provincial rugby in 2006 but struggled with a shoulder injury last season. His return, to the sevens scene this year, revealed his compelling mix of skills which could be nurtured in an All Black squad as a loose forward or wing combination.
Those debates will circulate after Rokocoko revealed his plight yesterday after the Blues' unproductive trip to Sydney where they were dusted 37-16 by the Waratahs.
"I can't carry on playing otherwise there will be more consequences later on in my career," said Rokocoko.
There were no outward signs of damage to his wrist, which he injured three weeks ago, and while he was not in pain, Kara said the wing needed corrective surgery now, otherwise he would suffer from arthritis within five years.
"The unfortunate thing is when the ligament has gone, the bones can move and with movement it is much like I guess, driving a car on a bald tyre and in time that tyre will wear out and the same thing withJoe's wrist," Kara said.
The speedster who has scored 43 tries in 48 tests was part of the Cotton Wool Club withdrawn from the start of the last Super 14 campaign while this time he misses the business end because of his uncommon injury.
"It is quite strange and frustrating. At first when it happened against the Force we had x-rays and we saw nothing had occurred to the bones or no major injury there until we had the MRI and saw a few ligaments had been torn," Rokocoko said.
"I have got three to four months out of rugby, I guess, but I am hoping it will be three months but it all depends on how I go about it and listen to the right people and be smart."
The Blues have Tuitavake and Wulf as their senior wings while the spirited David Smith is also in the squad and the versatile Isa Nacewa could also be used. He will have a fitness test tomorrow on his knee to see whether he will make his comeback this weekend against the Brumbies or in the next game against the Crusaders.
