All Blacks coach Dave Rennie called the injury “reasonably serious” but had not been fully debriefed by the team doctor.
Leroy Carter was attended to by All Blacks medical staff after scoring his try against the Wallabies at Eden Park. Photo / Photosport
“Yeah, it didn’t look good. Sort of like a hip-drop type tackle, landed on the back of his ankle,” Rennie said.
“I’m sure it’s not intentional.”
This incident comes weeks after Penrith Panthers halfback Nathan Cleary suffered a gruesome injury from a hip-drop tackle being performed on him in his side’s NRL preliminary final loss against the Newcastle Knights.
Cleary was carted off the field with a compound fracture and will see him out of action beyond the start of the 2027 NRL season.
Meanwhile, All Blacks winger Carter joins a growing list of injured All Blacks after Richie Mo’unga was ruled out of the first Bledisloe Cup test with a calf tear.
Chay Fihaki and Emoni Narawa were brought into the All Blacks squad midweek, but if Carter is sidelined for an extended period it could open the door for Kyren Taumoefolau to make his debut for New Zealand.
Taumoefolau’s stellar season with the Tasman Mako saw him break the record for the highest try-scoring season in NPC history with 19.
The outside back had previously represented Tonga at the 2023 Rugby World Cup, but has come to the end of his three-year stand-down period, making him eligible to represent the All Blacks.