‘He’s out’: Shannon Frizell set to miss World Cup opener with 'niggly' injury

Flanker Shannon Frizell has picked up a “niggly” hamstring injury in the leadup to the All Blacks clash with rivals South Africa at Twickenham next weekend.

The rampaging loose forward was compared to legendary All Black Jerome Kaino after starring against the World Champion Springboks at Mt Smart Stadium last month.

Dazzling winger Will Jordan set up Aaron Smith for the opening try of the contest in the opening few minutes, and Frizell added to their lead shortly after. Frizell ran over Willie le Roux, and was generally sensational that night.

It was Frizell’s best Test in an All Blacks jersey.

Frizell joins 103-Test veteran Brodie Retallick on the sidelines, with both players also set to miss the All Blacks’ Rugby World Cup opener against France on September 9 (NZST).

Retallick limped off the field at Forsyth Barr Stadium during New Zealand’s come-from-behind win over the Wallabies in Bledisloe II with a knee injury.

“Brodie is progressing really well, and we’ll assess more next week,” Foster told reporters on Friday. “He’s out of the South Africa game and likely to be out of the French game.

“We’ve got Shannon Frizell who tweaked his hamstring two days ago doing a speed session. Again, that’s probably a similar time frame, so that’s a bit niggly for us.”

The injury could potentially propel loose forward Luke Jacobson into the starting side at blindside flanker, and Dalton Papali’i is another option if coach Foster opts for a backrow reshuffle.

On Thursday morning, Jacobson spoke with RugbyPass about the All Blacks’ chance of hoisting the Webb Ellis Cup.

“I think things are tracking pretty well, and it’s not going to be an easy feat but we’ve got some awesome coaches here, they’re doing a good job,” Jacobson said.

“We’ve got some awesome players and experienced players leading us in the right way.

“We’re already moulding together as you might see from the last few games but I think we’ve still got more to offer so it’s exciting to see where we can get to.”