All Blacks coach Ian Foster insists Roger Tuivasa-Sheck is still very much on his selection radar for the Rugby World Cup, despite his code switch back to rugby league next year.
The Blues midfielder has rocked the rugby world with his decision to return to rugby league next year, re-signing for three years with NZ Warriors in the NRL, after his current contract with NZ Rugby expires.
Tuivasa-Sheck, 29, is a former Warriors captain and winner of the NRL's Dally M Medal as its outstanding player in 2018, before switching to rugby to chase his All Blacks dream.
He debuted for the national team against Ireland last year and has logged three appearances in a congested midfield, where he faces plenty of competition for a ticket to France this year.
Both Anton Lienert-Brown and Jack Goodhue missed last year's international campaign, but David Havili, Jordie Barrett and Rieko Ioane anchored the midfield, with Tuivasa-Sheck, Braydon Ennor, Levi Aumua and Peter Umaga-Jensen also in the mix.
Foster has told Sky Sport's Breakdown that he's disappointed with Tuivasa-Sheck's decision to abandon rugby, given his recent improvement, but he's adamant his protege is still in World Cup contention.
'He's a quality person and he did everything right, the way he went about it, so there's nothing untoward in that regard," said Foster. "I fully understand his decision... I wish him well.
"In the meantime, he's eligible for the All Blacks. We have complexities of contracts now, with people leaving, and quite frankly, the policy's always been, if they're available this year, they're available.
"We've made that clear to Roge and I know he wants to give everything he can to make it."
Tuivasa-Sheck's case hasn't been helped by a broken hand suffered during the early games of Super Rugby Pacific, but he is expected to return for the Blues soon.
"I'm disappointed he's leaving, because I've seen the growth in him. I thought, at the start of Super Rugby, he took another step up and I was looking forward to seeing that continue," Foster told Breakdown.
Tuivasa-Sheck is far from the only current All Black looking elsewhere for his future, with Foster himself yet to announce his prospects beyond this year, after Scott Robertson's appointment to the head coaching role for 2024. Several senior players have also indicated they will look offshore to continue their careers.
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