Dan Carter good to go

LAWRENCE SMITH/Fairfax Media

KEEN AS: Dan Carter says the final decision on whether he plays against Wales is his.

Dan Carter back after injury scare

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Forget about the Dan Carter conjecture, the All Blacks' pivotal player is good to go against Wales - and that's straight from the horse's mouth.

Carter, who's been bothered by a calf haematoma picked up in Tokyo, raised concerns he might be a late scratching from Sunday's test when he took only a limited part in the All Blacks' key Thursday training run at the Cardiff club.

He was late to join his team-mates for their last concerted hitout of the week and when he did emerge solo from the tunnel he took a while to run through a warmup before eventually lining up in the backs for an opposed session. It's fair to say the man rated the best No 10 in world rugby was operating at around 50-60 percent.

But then when the team came together for the high-intensity part of the morning, Carter stepped back and let Stephen Donald run in his place. He took an observer's role alongside Steve Hansen so he could stay abreast of any subtle changes without having to stretch out on the calf.

Then he went through his goalkicking routine in the skill part of the session without any obvious discomfort - a sure sign that his calf is well on the mend.

Later as he spoke to media at the team's inner-city hotel, he confirmed that his limited part in training was precautionary only and that he was confident he'd take his place in the lineup at a stadium he rates one of the best in the game.

"That was my first run with the team today, and I'll look after it, see how I pull up and see if I get through the captain's run tomorrow. But I'm pretty confident," he said.

Carter confirmed the final call on his participation would be his, but it would be made in conjunction with medical staff after a week in which he's mixed massage and ice treatment with work in the pool and on the bike.

The shame of it all has been that Carter had hinted he wasn't far from his very best with an impressive display in Tokyo where he was faultless kicking for goal and challenged the line with the most confidence he's shown this year.

He said the setback now becomes "a mental thing", as well as a physical issue, because he hasn't been able to do the sharp end of his regular test buildup.

"That's frustrating," he said. "But I'm sure once I get out there and the adrenalin kicks in, I'll be OK. I have certain goals I want to get out of the game, and I'll look to continue the progress I've been making."

Carter says he's expecting something pretty similar to what he encountered last year when Wales led the All Blacks at halftime before going down 29-9.

"They're a skilful side -- they've got some very exciting backs," he said. "Last year they came out and were extremely physical and fired up, and we're expecting that again. We will have to match that and if we do that hopefully we can get our game going."

It's also shaping as a massive test for players such as halfback Brendon Leonard, lock Jason Eaton and flanker Jerome Kaino who have been, not only handed promotions this week, but challenged by their coaches to prove they belong at this level.

Canterbury's Kieran Read, who takes back over at No 8, believes the changes from Graham Henry, and the message that went with them, have added an "edge" this week.

"It puts a lot of heat on guys, but I think it's positive, especially within the loose forwards," he said. "There's seven guys who could easily start so you've got to do all the little things to make sure you're prepared."

Read felt Eaton and Kaino would both make positive contributions up front.

"Those two haven't had too much time the last few tests. I know they're really excited about the game so it's probably good for the side to have guys like that coming in."

Kaino, for one, is pumped just to get another chance to start...

"I take it as motivation. I know what I can do out there in the black jersey and for me it's about going through my normal preparation. I can't get bogged down by expectation," he said.

"The battle for the No 6 jersey adds to it. I played well last year in Cardiff and that gives me a lot of confidence going into this game."