Carter out of test

Springbok lock Eben Etzebeth goes before a disciplinary hearing today and is expected to be banned for Saturday's test against the All Blacks.

If that's bad news for the Boks, the really good news is that the All Blacks have lost talismanic flyhalf Dan Carter to injury.

Etzebeth faces judgment for a head butt on Wallaby lock Nathan Sharpe in last Saturday's 26-19 defeat for the Boks. The young lock was cited soon after the match.

The expected guilty verdict is not the end of the Boks' problems. Bryan Habana has an ankle injury and Jannie du Plessis has a pulled hamstring.

Carter was yesterday ruled out of Saturday's Dunedin Four Nations test to allow him to recover completely from a calf-muscle strain.

The All Blacks will need to decide between young flyhalves Aaron Cruden and Beauden Barrett.

Coach Steve Hansen has hinted that the former would get the nod, even though Cruden failed to put his stamp on the game last Saturday in place of Carter.

Carter had been struggling with the injury as the All Blacks prepared for their match against Argentina in Wellington but was named in the starting line-up on Thursday. He was later withdrawn from the team that defeated Argentina 21-5 on Saturday.

The 30-year-old Carter, the world's leading points-scorer, is expected to travel with the team for their final two games in the Four Nations - against the Pumas in La Plata on September 29 and against the Springboks at Soccer City on October 6.

"He is getting older and the more you play the game, the more vulnerable you are to injury. He's got quite a few miles on the clock," said Hansen.

"At the moment it's about getting him on the park. He is what we call a red flag athlete. He runs a high risk of being re-injured, so we must be smart on the wear and tear of his body and the pressure we put him under."

Another casualty from Saturday's Perth test is Wallaby scrumhalf Will Genia, who left the field with a knee injury that will sideline him for six months.

Genia had taken over the captaincy against the Boks in the absence of David Pocock, who also has a knee injury. Pocock had taken over the captaincy from James Horwill, currently out with a hamstring injury.

The Boks will have a clearer picture today of Habana and Du Plessis's injuries.

Flip van der Merwe is expected to play lock if Etzebeth is suspended.

Habana played with a spring in his step before being forced to leave the field after he was sandwiched in a crunching Wallabies tackle.

Bok skipper Jean de Villiers stopped short of pleading for patience from SA's rugby public.

"We need to learn from the experiences. We need to grow as a team. It takes time. This is a young team. Unfortunately we don't have much time to grow at this level," he said.