Emoni Narawa has welcomed his recall to the All Blacks' 44-man squad for the Greatest Rivalry tour of South Africa, describing it as reward for those who supported him through a brutal run of injuries.
The 27-year-old Chiefs back has managed only four Test appearances since his debut against Argentina in Mendoza in 2023, with his international career repeatedly derailed by misfortune. His last cap came at Eden Park last year, where he scored the opening try inside two minutes before a collision with Handré Pollard under a high ball left him with a punctured lung and broken ribs — an injury that kept him out for eight months. On his return with the Chiefs this season, he broke his foot and missed a further four months, and has also recently recovered from a wrist complaint. He had previously withdrawn from the 2023 World Cup squad in France with a slipped disc.
"I probably haven't had the smoothest run in the All Blacks jersey. Luck just hasn't been on my side," Narawa told Radio New Zealand. "To be called back into the squad is pretty special and a reward for all those who helped my rehabilitation journey and my family."
Narawa is seen as Will Jordan's primary competition for the number 14 jersey during the tour, which comprises warm-up matches against all four SA URC franchises followed by three Tests against the Springboks — twice in Johannesburg and once in Cape Town — before a fourth and final Test in Baltimore on 12 September.