Suspended: Southland Stags lock set for stint on sidelines
“He is definitely suspended, and it will be a couple or three weeks. We are just not exactly sure how long it is to be fair."
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Southland lock Mitchell Dunshea has been suspended in the lead up to a crunch five days for the Stags, although just how many games he will miss is yet to be confirmed.
Dunshea was shown a yellow card in the loss to Canterbury on Friday night and on review he now is set for a stint on the sideline.
The Highlanders lock - who is in his first season with the Stags - made shoulder-to-head contact in a tackle that went wrong.
Stags coach Matt Saunders confirmed Dunshea had been suspended but they were still awaiting just how many games he will miss.
“They are still working through it, so we’ll work out how long it is and then go from there,” Saunders said.
“He is definitely suspended, and it will be a couple or three weeks. We are just not exactly sure how long it is to be fair.”
The Stags will play Manawatu in Palmerston North on Wednesday night before backing up against Auckland on Sunday.
On top of Dunshea’s suspension, fellow lock Shneil Singh will also miss the games against Manawatu and Auckland after failing an HIA during the outing against Canterbury.
It has tested Southland’s locking stocks.
The Stags had a setback before the NPC season started when Eastern-Northern Barbarians lock Woody Kirkwood suffered a season-ending knee injury in the Stags’ preseason hit out against Otago in Gore.
Former Australian U20s player Daniel Maiava was drafted into the squad as cover following the round one game against Otago.
The 21-year-old, who played for the Melbourne Rebels this year, has had two appearances off the bench for the Stags against Hawke’s Bay and Wellington. He will now start at lock alongside Josh Bekhuis against Manawatu on Wednesday night.
No locking cover has been named on a bench which includes No 8s Semisi Tupou Ta’eiloa and Dylan Nel.
Blair Ryall will start in the No 8 jersey and will slot in at lock if either Bekhuis or Maiava are forced from the field.
With teams unable to bring in players from outside the province after round five - apart from frontrowers - the Stags will need to go to its Southland Development team if further injuries hit in the locking department.
Locks in the Southland Development team this season included Curtis Palmer, Alex Yallop, and Hunter Areaiiti-Burgess.
In other changes to the Stags lineup to play Manawatu, flanker Hayden Micheals gets his first start of the season after missing the first the four weeks through injury.
Sean Paranihi will start at tight-head prop against his former province Manawatu with Hamdahn Tuipulotu moving to the bench.
First-choice tight-heap prop Morgan Mitchell remains sidelined with a back injury.
With Ethan de Groot back on All Black duties Jack Sexton returns to the starting lineup and Joe Walsh comes into the 23.
Jay Renton returns to start at halfback, while Englishman Charlie Powell replaces Angus Simmers at centre in an otherwise unchanged backline.
Wednesday night’s game will kick-off at 7.05pm.
Southland Stags team to play Manawatu:
Jack Sexton
Jack Taylor
Sean Paranihi
Josh Bekhuis
Daniel Maiava
Sean Withy ©
Hayden Michaels
Blair Ryall
Jay Renton
Byron Smith
Michael Manson
Isaac Te Tamaki
Charlie Powell
Viliami Fine
Rory Van Vugt
Nic Souchon
Joe Walsh
Hamdahn Tuipulotu
Dylan Nel
Semisi Tupou Ta'eiloa *
Liam Howley
Jake Strachan
Angus Simmers
* - denotes blazer game
Unavailable due to injury: Hunter Fahey, Paula Latu, Morgan Mitchell, Faletoi Peni, Shneil Singh, Matt Whaanga, Connor Collins, Woody Kirkwood (Season Ending).