3 minute read

The Blues will be missing their star Test winger Rieko Ioane and two other injured players when they face the NSW Waratahs in Newcastle.

The NSW Waratahs are the benefactors of an early-season injury bomb at the Blues who have sidelined three players, including star winger Rieko Ioane.

The Blues will cross the Tasman without All Blacks gun Ioane and front-rowers Alex Hodgman and Ray Niuia ahead of Saturday's match in Newcastle.

Ioane, who has scored 24 tries in 29 Tests, looked sharp in last Friday's competition-opening 37-29 loss to the Chiefs at Eden Park.

The trimmed-down 22-year-old crossed for two tries before being substituted early in the second half under New Zealand Rugby's high-performance stipulations.

Ioane is expected to be sidelined for "several weeks", a Blues statement said.

Hooker Niuia has been ruled out for the season with a knee injury while prop Hodgman, one of the best performers against the Chiefs, has suffered a calf muscle tear that will sideline him for at least a month.

Five-eighth Otere Black and veteran hooker James Parsons are both possibilities to return from injury this week.