[Source: 1News]

All Blacks captain Scott Barrett’s finger injury has ruled him out of Saturday’s Test against Argentina in Wellington and the one a week later in Auckland.

Lock Barrett suffered the injury in the win over Fiji in San Diego and he received surgery on his return.

Ardie Savea will captain the side over the next fortnight, with Codie Taylor stepping up to a vice-captain role alongside midfielder Jordie Barrett.

In other injury news confirmed today by assistant coach Jason Ryan, Blues first-five Harry Plummer has joined the squad as an injury replacement for Stephen Perofeta, who has suffered a “niggle”. The nature of Perofeta’s injury was not specified by Ryan.

Barrett’s absence at Sky Stadium and Eden Park could prompt the selectors to take a slightly more conservative route against the Pumas than they perhaps may have hoped for.

The All Blacks scraped home to win the two England Tests – the first under Scott Robertson’s reign – by close margins but broke the shackles against Fiji with a more experimental and youthful line-up.

With 72 caps, Barrett is by far the most experienced All Blacks forward behind Savea (84).

Patrick Tuipulotu will likely return to the starting line-up on Saturday, with Tupou Vaa’i and Sam Darry, who made his Test debut against Fiji, also in the mix.

Robertson and company will be eager to have Barrett back for the demanding two Test Rugby Championship tour of South Africa.

There is little doubt that Barrett’s injury will weaken the All Blacks’ lineout, already an area of concern after its struggles against England and their talismanic lock Maro Itoje.

Ryan conceded today: “We learned a bit there. We tipped our hat to Itoje, we thought he did some good stuff, but we were 17 out of 18 in our last Test so 98% and we’re looking to build on that. Argentina bring a little bit of a different defensive system.”

Barrett’s setback, and that of Perofeta, will strengthen the case for Beauden Barrett to start at fullback in Wellington.

The elder Barrett’s introduction changed the game for the All Blacks against England at Eden Park and his experience and calmness off the bench in Dunedin was also important.

He wore the No.15 jersey against Fiji at Snapdragon Stadium and will likely retain it against a Pumas side who will probably kick a fair bit of possession into the All Blacks’ back field.

The last three tries scored against the All Blacks have come via cross-kicks, an area of vulnerability that Robertson’s men will want to quickly fix.

It may mean Will Jordan’s long-awaited return may come via the right wing in place of Sevu Reece or from the reserves bench.

Jordan made his comeback from a long-term shoulder injury in a pre-season game for Tasman last Friday and the selectors will want him quickly back in the mix in the knowledge that he can adapt to the rigours of Test football without a long build-up.

The other area of selectorial intrigue is the midfield. There is no doubt that as a vice-captain Jordie Barrett will start at second-five but his centre partner is more of a mystery. Will it be Rieko Ioane or Billy Proctor?

It’s possible that Ioane could find himself back on the left wing in the short term after Proctor made an assured Test debut in the No.13 jersey against Fiji. Proctor’s decision-making and distribution skills will have impressed the selectors and both remain work-ons for Ioane.

Meanwhile, Harry Plummer’s ascension to the squad not surprisingly received the thumbs up from Blues teammate Dalton Papali’i today.

Papali’i, who announced today that he has extended his contract with New Zealand Rugby to the end of 2027, said: “This is his opportunity. He’s played well this year and has taken a massive step forward… you could say he led us to a championship.”