Israel Dagg might road test his knee while wearing his University club kit this weekend. Or he could do it in training with the Crusaders.

What we do know for certain is that All Blacks fullback/wing Dagg, who hasn't played Super Rugby since injuring his right knee in the match the Reds in Brisbane on March 11, won't be considered for the Crusaders' match against the Hurricanes in Christchurch on Saturday night.

Crusaders assistant coach Leon MacDonald said the 61-test veteran, who required surgery after an MRI scan confirmed a PCL and lateral meniscal injury had been suffered at Suncorp Stadium, wasn't ready for first-class rugby.

GETTY IMAGES Israel Dagg played for his University club in Christchurch last year. It was his first game in 2016.

His comeback could involve getting a run for University, who play Marist-Albion on Saturday, or being pitched into a contact session with his Crusaders team-mates.

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KAI SCHWOERER/GETTY IMAGES Assistant coach Leon MacDonald: "(Dagg) won't be chucked right in at the deep end."

"Izzy needs to have a hit-out - he is obviously coming back from a minor operation," MacDonald said. "His process will be a little bit of rugby at some stage. He won't be chucked right in at the deep end. He needs to make sure he feels comfortable and strong.

"We are hoping to give him some game time. Whether it is a club game, or live training I am not sure. But he will need a decent hit-out this week."

Dagg, you can be certain, will be desperate to return to Super Rugby as quickly as possible. Given the Crusaders will only play two games after their fixture against the Chiefs in Fiji on May 19, before the competition goes into hiatus, he will need to get some action to prove to the All Blacks selectors he must be selected for the three-match test series against the British and Irish Lions.

When he injured his knee it was initially stated he would only be sidelined for approximately for six weeks. He has been unavailable for eight.

The Crusaders coaches are expected to name David Havili at fullback against the Hurricanes, with George Bridge and Seta Tamanivalu on the wings. Former Wallabies wing Digby Ioane is still recovering from surgery to his pinky finger.

Meanwhile, an additional 3300 tickets have gone on sale for the game at AMI Stadium, extending the capacity to 20,300. There are currently 4000 tickets still available.



The extra seats will be created by extending the west stand, which was always going to happen for the matches against the Highlanders and British and Irish Lions in June.

Crusaders CEO Hamish Riach said the demand for tickets meant the temporary stand was installed earlier than originally planned.



"With the Crusaders so far unbeaten and the 2016 title holder Hurricanes only having dropped one game to the Chiefs, this promises to be a mouth-watering match.

"Supporters have been snapping up tickets to the game at a rate that suggested we would sell out, so it made sense to bring the build of the extended stand forward so that more fans can get to the game."



