"After a succession of career-threatening injuries: "I played ten injury-free years between the ages of 12 and 22. Then, suddenly, it seemed like I was allergic to the twentieth century."
Nigel Melville (1984)
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Tialata named to replace Ben Franks
8/11/2010 2:37:45 p.m.
Wellington prop Neemia Tialata has been called into the All Blacks squad for the remainder of the BackingBlack Tour of the United Kingdom and Ireland, with injured prop Ben Franks to head home.
All Blacks Doctor Deb Robinson said 26-year-old Franks had a scan in London today which had confirmed he had a small disc bulge in his lower back. Franks was injured while taking part in a stretching session on Friday.
“The injury means that he would have been unavailable for the next two Tests against Scotland and Ireland and then only a possibility for the final Test against Wales,” she said.
All Blacks Coach Graham Henry said: “It’s obviously a huge disappointment for Ben but he understands that it’s in his best interests to go home and rehabilitate. Neemia’s ability to play both tighthead and loosehead makes him the logical choice to replace Ben.”
28-year-old Tialata has played 43 Tests for the All Blacks since his debut in 2005 and last played for the All Blacks in the Steinlager Series Tests against Ireland and Wales in New Zealand in June this year.
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