Sam Cane

New Zealand’s build-up to their Test encounter with England on Saturday has not gone as smoothly as they would have hoped.

Flank Sam Cane has become the latest injury concern in a camp already scrambling to cover some setbacks.

Cane took a heavy knock in a body on body collision at training on Tuesday and received assistance on what looked to be his back or shoulder.

Cane started in last Saturday’s 74-6 win over the United States, but is unlikely to feature in the match against England this weekend.

Wyatt Crockett and Jerome Kaino, who are recovering from shin and foot injuries respectively, both came through training unscathed.

The latest setback comes after both wing Cory Jane and hooker Nathan Harris were ruled out of the tour after being injured against the US Eagles.

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The All Blacks will name their side on Thursday and the big question is what role code-hopper Sonny Bill Williams will play.

In the absence of the injured Ma’a Nonu, Williams’ impressive performance in Chicago last week has placed him in the mix to play England at Twickenham.

Williams, who scored two tries against the US at Soldier Field, exceeded the expectations of the All Blacks’ coaches, who have some tough decisions to make this week.

Ryan Crotty, who played well against the Eagles outside Williams, is a candidate for the No.13 jersey, but will probably lose out to the experience and reliability of Conrad Smith against England, with Malakai Fekitoa, who like Smith didn’t play against the States last weekend, vying with Williams for the No.12 jersey.

It could be that Fekitoa, who has had a stunning introduction to the international game this year, will start alongside Conrad Smith, but Williams will have strong claims for a place on the bench at least despite his recent comeback after two years playing Rugby League.

“It looked like he had never been gone and that’s a big credit to him,” assistant coach Ian Foster said.

“He’s worked really hard behind the scenes on getting up to speed on the strategy side and some of the little bits of our game.

Overall, we were delighted with how he played – he probably exceeded our expectations in a lot of ways, just in terms of the way he trusted his instincts. He didn’t worry about being in the right place, his instincts eventually got him into the right place anyway, so that’s a positive sign.

“The more options we’ve got, the better,” Foster said of his plentiful midfield candidates. ”

“We know what can happen in this game, you can get some injuries and you have to put young players in.

“I guess we’ve had to do that in the last 12 to 18 months, particularly in the midfield with Ryan and Malakai both coming in and getting starts in the Rugby Championship. Long-term that’s been great for us.

“In fact, I thought Ryan had a really strong game at centre and just showed he looks settled at this level now. Yes, we’ve got some good options.”

The other big decision the selectors must make is at flyhalf, with Aaron Cruden, who started against the States, Dan Carter, Beauden Barrett and Colin Slade, called in as cover for Cory Jane, all vying for the No.10 jersey.

Coach Steve Hansen is likely to start either Cruden or Barrett, with Carter possibly missing out on a place on the bench in favour of Slade due to his lack of game time – 30 minutes against USA notwithstanding.