Well, it now definitely looks as though the All Black's will be without Richie for at least the first four games of the Tri Nations, leaving a huge gap in their loose forwards.

Rodney So'oialo will captain the side in his absence - but the biggest concern is over who will take his place.

Potentially, So'oialo could move back to the flanks with Jerome Kaino returning to number 8, but So'oialo is not a specialist open side - and that could leave us very vulnerable.

If Graham Henry looks to bring in a specialist, his options are limited - Daniel Braid suffered an injury while playing for the New Zealand Maori side, and Chris Masoe (whilst having experience at Test level) has been limited to club rugby for the past few weeks. He may not be conditioned to the step up.

In our minds, Liam Messam should be brought in. While he is relatively inexperienced, he definitely has some great skills. We thought he was unlucky to miss out when the squad was named, but this could be the opening he needs...

Henry will also be looking to bring in someone to cover Ali Williams, who looks set to miss the first Test against South Africa. His options are Jason Eaton (playing well for the Maori's...), Tom Donnelly, and Ross Filipo.

We think Eaton is the man for the job, having experience, and the ability to cover in the loose forwards.

We hope McCaw can recover quickly...he's one of our greatest assets, and will be sorely missed around the ruck.

But, it is a good chance for the other loosey's to step up and show our depth...go to it, lads.