Aaron Wainwright is out of Wales’ Test against the All Blacks.
A minor calf injury has ruled the No 8 out, and Taine Basham starts for Wales for the first time in four years. Is Basham the right man for the shirt, or would you have picked Taine Plumtree?
Aaron Wainwright injury: the Wales No 8 misses Saturday’s Test against New Zealand with a minor calf problem, Cardiff Rugby said when the team was named on Thursday 12 November.
“I’m delighted that Taine gets an opportunity this weekend,” head coach Steve Tandy said in the team announcement. “The way he’s been playing for Cardiff has been great and I’m excited to see him go on Saturday.”
Key facts
- Out: Aaron Wainwright, 29, Leicester Tigers No 8, minor calf injury
- Record under Steve Tandy: 10 starts in 13 Tests, the last seven in a row
- Starts at No 8: Taine Basham, 27, Cardiff. Taine Plumtree, Scarlets, is on the bench
- New Zealand: Will Jordan out (hamstring); Jordie Barrett available after passing his HIA
- Back row: James Botham and Jac Morgan start with Basham; Botham comes in for Alex Mann
- Kick-off: Principality Stadium, 14:10 GMT on Saturday 14 November
Aaron Wainwright injury: the forward Tandy cannot easily replace
Wainwright won his 71st cap in the 28-21 win over Japan on Saturday 7 November. No forward in the squad has more, and BBC Sport Wales rates him the side’s most effective carrier among the forwards.
He has started 10 of head coach Steve Tandy’s 13 Tests, the last seven of them in a row, by WalesOnline’s count.
A hip injury kept the former Dragons forward out when New Zealand visited last November. His one Test against the All Blacks came back in 2021.
The last time Basham started against them, Wainwright was beside him
Basham gets the shirt, with Scarlets back-rower Taine Plumtree among the replacements. He won his recall this autumn as the form No 8 in Welsh club rugby.
His Wales record is patchy. His last appearance was off the bench in the 2024 Six Nations under Warren Gatland. His last start came in the 2022 Six Nations, roughly four and a half years before this Test.
His one start against New Zealand came in autumn 2021, in the No 7 shirt, with Wainwright alongside him in the back row. He has started only once at No 8 for Wales, against Fiji that same autumn, next to two opensides, Ellis Jenkins and Thomas Young.
Carrying is the part of his game he values most, Basham has said recently. It is also the job BBC Sport Wales says Wainwright does better than any other Wales forward.
New Zealand have a gap of their own
The visitors arrive without wing Will Jordan, who has a hamstring injury. Centre Jordie Barrett is available after passing his head injury assessment protocols.
“We have one of the best teams in the world coming,” Tandy said. “We want to be better and put in an 80-minute performance.”
How the doubt became an absence
Wainwright sat out training on Tuesday and was seen in a protective boot, BBC Sport Wales reported. Thursday’s team announcement settled it: he is unavailable with a minor calf injury, according to Cardiff Rugby.
James Botham also starts, in place of Alex Mann, and Jac Morgan completes the back row.
What happens next
Wales play New Zealand at 14:10 GMT on Saturday. Australia come to Wales on 21 November. The Nations Championship finals follow at Twickenham at the end of the month, and the full run is on the Wales fixtures page.
Wales go into Saturday fifth of the six northern sides, with two wins from four.
With Wainwright out, is Basham the right No 8 against the All Blacks, or should Plumtree have started?
Read next
- What three weeks were meant to settle for Taulupe Faletau
- The All Blacks injury that happened with nobody near him
- The tactical problem the All Blacks carried out of last November
Sources: BBC Sport Wales, WalesOnline, Cardiff Rugby (team announcement).
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