All Blacks coach Steve Hansen. was rapt that his veteran loose forward Jerome Kaino was ready for a return to action.

Not quite a clean bill of health, but it was close to the next best thing as the All Blacks assembled in Auckland on Sunday to launch preparations for the Lions series, and Friday's hitout against Samoa to precede it.

Skipper Kieran Read won't play against the Samoans at Eden Park on Friday night. That was expected. Though he remains on course to return from a six-week absence with a thumb fracture for the opening test against the British and Irish Lions on June 24.

Likely bench five-eighth Aaron Cruden is also out this week with that knee injury picked up on Friday night playing for the Chiefs against the Hurricanes, though there is hope he will return sooner rather than later. No cover has been called in.

Bruising Highlanders loose forward Liam Squire is also out until probably the second Lions test, while Dane Coles remains on a watching brief as he continues to deal with concussion symptoms. "He's not conditioned enough to be playing in this first test, but he remains a day-by-day prospect," said coach Steve Hansen after a busy first day in camp with meetings, medicals and the always highly anticipated dishing out of the free gear.

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Midfielder Ryan Crotty is also "touch and go" for this week after the rib cartilage damage he sustained playing for the Crusaders against the Highlanders, though his prognosis is a lot more positive than it was at the time.

PHIL WALTER/GETTY IMAGES All Black captain Kieran Read (L) should be back in action for the first Lions test.

"He hasn't had any contact or anything yet, and it might be we choose not to play him," added Hansen. "But he's looking pretty good. We'll just take our time with him. He's down to train tomorrow and the next day, and from there we'll get a better gauge.

"Those sort of injuries you need to be back on the track to really understand if he's good enough to go."

The rest is positive. Veteran Blues loose forward Jerome Kaino will play against Samoa – a test he said he was personally treating as a "special" one – after progressing well from his minor knee surgery. It will be a key hitout for him ahead of the opening Lions test eight days later, after not playing since late in April.

JOSEPH JOHNSON/FAIRFAX NZ Warren Gatland and his men are working their way towards a three-test confrontation with the All Blacks.

"JK will definitely be good, because then we don't go into a test match with both (he and Read) being short of a run, " said Hansen of his players who will benefit most from the Samoan hitout.

"Reado has done a lot of hard work, as has JK through [fitness trainer) Gilly (Nic Gill) and their franchise trainers. They're in good nick. So JK getting a game will be great."

And others who had been carrying knocks, such as fullback Ben Smith (concussion) and locks Brodie Retallick (concussion) and Scott Barrett (ankle and knee), had presented in full health and ready to launch preparations with two big days of training on Monday and Tuesday in Auckland.

RAGHAVAN VENUGOPAL/PHOTOSPORT Aaron Cruden is out with a knee injury.

Hansen also confirmed that first five-eighth Beauden Barrett was fine and that recent quad issues would not prevent him taking on the goalkicking responsibilities if they are indeed assigned to him this week.

There was also a slight improvement in the status of Coles who has hardly played this entire season after an array of afflictions, concluding with his concussion problem.

"He's doing controlled training, which is a step further than he was a couple of weeks ago," said Hansen. "He's coming along nice. But it's just one of those injuries you can't rush, and God willing he'll come right quickly, and if not we'll wait and wait and wait until he does."

The coach said he was relaxed about Read going in to the Lions series with no recent footy unde rhis belt.

"Our last skipper used to be able do it, and this one has got similar mental fortitude and strength of character. It's encouraging to know it can be done by people with those attributes. He's in good physical nick, and fortunately you don't have to run on your thumb, so he's done a lot of mileage."

Hansen also admitted he would be giving the scrum issues of his Crusaders front-rowers on Saturday night a close examination this week, even though they won't see Frenchman Mathieu Raynal during the Lions series. Raynal takes the whistle on Friday night, while South Africa's Jaco Peyper and Frenchmen Jerome Garces and Roman Poite (in that order) will officiate the three Lions tests.

"We'll have to address something because they got penalised four times. We'll get an interpretation of what he thought was the problem. We don't get him, so it's not so much the man, it's what he's seeing, and is that going to be the same for the other northern hemisphere referees?

"Whether he got [his decisions] right or wrong is irrelevant, that's what they're coming into the game with, so if the other two northern hemisphere men feel the same way we'll have to adjust."

Tawera Kerr-Barlow and the Ioane brothers, Rieko and Akira, will all be released for Maori duty, as planned, on Wednesday.