Ardie Savea stood down with immediate effect after grim injury update

The 32-year-old will not travel with Dave Rennie’s squad to Baltimore for the fourth and final Test of Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry after suffering a significant injury in Soweto.

It compounds a miserable evening for New Zealand, who fell to a 29-24 defeat against the Springboks as the hosts moved 2-1 ahead in the four-match series.

Savea had actually been one of the standout performers before his premature departure.

The inspirational number eight crossed twice as the All Blacks made an impressive start, but he was forced from the field nine minutes before half-time after suffering a shoulder injury.

Immediately after the final whistle, Rennie confirmed his captain would miss the Baltimore Test.

“He won't travel now,” Rennie said. “We'll work out what it will look like in the next few hours.”

The extent of the damage has now become clearer.

Fresh reports in New Zealand state that Savea has suffered a dislocated shoulder and will return home rather than continuing with the squad to the United States.

The injury could also potentially keep the All Blacks skipper sidelined for the remainder of 2026.

Savea isn't the only player heading home.

Quinn Tupaea has suffered an MCL injury, while Luke Jacobson — who assumed the captaincy after Savea's departure — has picked up an elbow tendon injury.

All three will return to New Zealand, with the All Blacks now expected to call up reinforcements ahead of the final Test.

Savea's absence represents an eno

mous blow for Rennie's side as they attempt to respond in Baltimore.

Victory would secure a 2-2 series draw, while another Springboks win would complete a hugely significant 3-1 triumph over their greatest rivals.

Here, we look at the All Blacks trio who failed to stand out when it mattered most.

Love endured a difficult afternoon, missing two conversions and a penalty, with his second conversion attempt greeted by plenty of boos from the crowd.

He was also shown a yellow card while defending on the Boks’ line, although he had worked hard defensively up to that point. Going forward, however, he struggled to get the All Blacks attack into any real rhythm and will be disappointed with his overall display.

The Hurricanes fly-half also lacked the usual running threat that makes him so difficult to defend. That threat often creates space for those around him, even when his playmaking is not quite at its best.

Without it, the All Blacks attack became relatively easy to contain, with only a handful of moments of individual brilliance from his teammates creating the opportunities that ultimately led to their scores.

The set piece was one of the biggest problems for the All Blacks, as they struggled to establish any kind of physical dominance against a powerful Springboks pack that enjoyed plenty of success in that area.

Lomax was solid enough in the scrum for much of the afternoon but failed to exert the kind of influence required against South Africa. He was eventually outmuscled on his own line, resulting in a penalty try.

The tighthead prop was replaced after 45 minutes and, overall, failed to make the same impact as starting loosehead George Bower.

Lomax is an experienced international and facing the Springboks is always a huge challenge, but if the All Blacks are going to compete with South Africa, their scrum has to be firing. It simply was not at the required level here.

Bower makes the list of underperformers for many of the same reasons as Lomax, although he can take slightly more credit for his overall contribution than his tighthead counterpart.

Unfortunately, his scrummaging also fell short of the exceptionally high standard required against the Springboks, which had a significant impact on the All Blacks' performance.

He conceded an early penalty but was heavily involved defensively, putting in plenty of tackles and showing an excellent work rate throughout his time on the field.

The scrum was relatively solid, but like Lomax, he was eventually overpowered on his own line, contributing to the penalty try. He was replaced after 45 minutes.

But how well do you remember them? See if you can name the past 20 All Blacks captains and prove your knowledge of New Zealand rugby.