All Blacks coach Steve Hanson has confirmed that talented winger Nehe Milner-Skudder will not play any part in the upcoming Rugby Championship.
One of the stand-out players in last year's all-conquering New Zealand side, he injured his shoulder whilst playing for the Hurricanes against the Auckland Blues in round 3 of this season's Super Rugby competition.
Despite undergoing surgery on the dislocated joint, the healing process has been slow and he is expected to be out of international action for the rest of the year.
Not the news I was hoping for 😤 The ol' wing needs to go under the knife to get fixed up. Bloody… https://t.co/2aMT6HJpgA
— Nehe Milner-Skudder (@Nmilnerskudder) March 16, 2016
Commenting on the player, Hanson said: "At the moment we don't see him being available for the end of year tour... he would probably need everything to go pitch-perfect."
He scored six tries at the 2015 World Cup including one in the final against Australia.
The tournament begins on August 20th, with Australia hosting New Zealand at ANZ Stadium in Sydney. New Zealand are due to tour the Northern Hemisphere in November playing Ireland twice, Italy and France.