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Super 14 tournament poised for All Blacks' return

New Zealand's 22 top All Blacks will return to the Super 14 rugby competition from today, in a trickle or a flood depending on the degree of urgency felt by their teams.

The Canterbury Crusaders, fifth on the championship table, have named all six of their returning All Blacks including captain Richie McCaw and flyhalf Daniel Carter for tomorrow's home match against the Stormers.

The Auckland Blues, who reached the top of the table without their top players and are now second behind South Africa's Sharks, have named only one All Black -- hooker Keven Mealamu -- on the bench for their clash with the Waratahs today.

The Otago Highlanders have named All Blacks Anton Oliver and Carl Hayman on the bench for tomorrow's match against the Bulls but the Wellington Hurricanes have rushed back six internationals for their eighth-round match against the Lions.

Crusaders coach Robbie Deans recalled all of his available All Blacks while expressing concern about their match fitness at the end of an extended World Cup conditioning program.

"Essentially the guys up front are going to have the hardest job in terms of the adjustment from training to playing," Deans said. "Their lungs are going to burn earliest and the longest and their legs are going to feel it as well."

"They won't all last the full 80 [minutes]. Whether any of them last the full 80 remains to be seen," he said.

Blues coach David Nucifora has felt less compulsion to recall his All Blacks for a match against the struggling Waratahs. Nucifora said the Blues' four All Blacks would be reintroduced systematically in coming weeks.

"We are also very conscious that this team is not just about four players, this team is about our whole squad," he said.

"Right from the start we had a plan for how we would go about this, and the other players have been doing the job and doing a very good job. A lot of what we are doing is about managing people. I think everyone was aware it would take a few weeks to integrate the players," he said.

The Crusaders have shown rumblings of their best form in improving from ninth to fifth in recent matches and are expected to be too strong for the Stormers. The Blues are similarly expected to have too much class for the Waratahs, who have sunk to 11th place on the table.

The Hurricanes have lost three matches in a row and urgently need a win against the Lions to re-establish their challenge for a semi-final place.

In other eighth-round matches, the last-place Queensland Reds host the improving Waikato Chiefs and the unbeaten Sharks meet the ACT Brumbies. The Perth, Australia-based Western Force and South Africa's Cheetahs have weekend byes.
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