Wallace Sititi's comeback gathers pace, and Sydney is the next test of it

Wallace Sititi started the first Bledisloe Cup Test at Eden Park last Saturday and made 18 carries, the most in the All Blacks side, in a performance the Herald described as a comeback gathering pace. Tonight, with two senior loose forwards out for the rest of the year, he starts again at No 8 in Sydney.

A rough 18 months

Sititi, 24, is a Chiefs loose forward who burst into the All Blacks as a debutant off the bench and then started in a blindside role against the Springboks in Cape Town two weeks after his 22nd birthday. He had knee surgery last year and missed most of Super Rugby, returning to play nine Tests, and this year he suffered a concussion in the Chiefs' quarterfinal.

The South Africa tour was a struggle. He found himself low in the pecking order, playing the midweek games, and came back onto the bench for the last two Tests against the Springboks as the series was lost 3-1. "It's been tough," he said. "I've learnt that's part of the journey."

The opening

Ardie Savea (shoulder) and Luke Jacobson (elbow) are both out for the rest of the year, and Ethan Blackadder (calf) and Anton Segner (concussion) miss the Sydney Test. That leaves the loose-forward jerseys to Sititi, Peter Lakai, Shannon Frizell and, when fit, Blackadder and Segner. Lakai was among the try-scorers in the 50-19 win at Eden Park and starts alongside Sititi again today.

The Herald recalls that Sititi was named World Rugby's breakthrough player and the All Blacks' player of the year after his first season, which makes the past year's disruption look sharper in hindsight. Coach Dave Rennie said after the series loss that the side had been "pretty shattered" and was pleased with how the group responded at Eden Park, where Sititi's 18 carries were the most in the team.

What to watch

The All Blacks play the Wallabies at Accor Stadium in Sydney at 6pm New Zealand time today, with the Bledisloe Cup already secured. The end-of-year tour squad has not been named yet, so a second strong night from Sititi and Lakai is the sort of performance that settles selection arguments before they begin.