'Not great, I'd say': Tana Umaga casts doubt over key All Blacks' availability

As the All Blacks travel through Bath before taking on Wales in Cardiff this weekend, assistant coach Tana Umaga has supplied an update on how both Will Jordan and Jordie Barrett are tracking.

The experienced All Blacks duo left the field during the second half at Murrayfield, both nursing different injuries.

Jordan, who has started every Test match under Dave Rennie in 2026, limped off with what looked to be a hamstring niggle, while Barrett has been placed in HIA protocols after a nasty clash with Blair Kinghorn’s shoulder.

Rennie’s post-match comments against Scotland suggested both players were unlikely to feature against Wales, and Umaga has all but confirmed Jordan’s absence this weekend.

“Yeah, no, not great, I’d say at this stage, but it’s still early, and you know he has to go through a bit more testing to wait,” the defence coach told Ryan Bridge on Herald Now about Jordan.

“Obviously, it’s still over 24 hours since the injury. So we’ve got to get the appropriate scans and medical checkups as as much as we can to see where he’s at and on that spectrum, so we can make informed decisions.”

Heading into the Nations Championship in the United Kingdom, the All Blacks had several injury concerns, including both Richie Mo’unga and Ethan Blackadder.

Mo’unga hadn’t featured for the All Blacks since the final Test of Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry tour, after pulling his calf in training ahead of the first Bledisloe Cup Test against Australia.

The Crusaders first-five was named to start on Monday in the No.10 jersey, but sustained that calf injury at Tuesday’s training, which ruled him out for over a month.

Blackadder, whose last appearance was also during the final Test against South Africa in Baltimore, picked up a slight calf niggle during the warm-up against Australia at Eden Park.

Both Mo’unga and Blackadder are set to be available this weekend in Cardiff, if selected, as the All Blacks look to extend their unbeaten Nations Championship streak.

“Yeah, so Ethan and Richie both trained fully last week, so they are selectable here,” Ryan said in Bath on Monday.

“So they’ve come along really well. You know, credit to the medical crew for getting them right. It was a couple of big conversations around them being on the plane, so they’re going well.”

Having had a week in the All Blacks environment, Ryan said that hybrid loose-forward Leicester Fainga’anuku will provide the All Blacks with genuine versatility this weekend.

“Yeah, he’s a genuine hybrid. I think, as Rennie has mentioned.

“Like he’s got the ability to float between both. He has been sitting in on the forwards meetings and the previews and reviews, and he’s been enjoying that.

“He’s obviously played there with Crusaders and the seven role. So there’s a lot of moving parts to that part of it, and also he can cover midfield.

“So he’s trained really well, and he’s been getting up to speed. It’s his first real time captured in the environment, so learning the language and getting to understand it has been important for him.”