Here are your rugby morning headlines for Monday, 8 August.
New Zealand's next move on Foster imminent
Reports in New Zealand suggest the chances of Ian Foster remaining as All Blacks coach beyond the next Test against South Africa in Johannesburg are diminishing fast, with New Zealand Rugby expected to make its intentions known next week.
Stuff report that NZ Rugby chief executive Mark Robinson will remain in South Africa this week before returning to New Zealand, where a decision on Foster's future could be made. The All Black coach was already under pressure after being told by bosses the series defeat to Ireland was not acceptable.
However, the report adds that the appointment of Crusaders coach Scott Robertson as a replacement might not be so straightforward. It is understood that the Super Rugby side are preparing for a number of different scenarios for 2023 - including one where Robertson remains in charge.
It is reported that while Robertson has a strong desire to coach his country, having applied for the job in 2019, he would not necessarily take the job in every possible circumstance. Were he to take the job now, he would be inheriting a management group not of his own making - far different to the control he has at the Crusaders now, or even if he'd been offered the All Blacks job in 2019.
Slater taking each day as it comes after MND diagnosis
Former Gloucester second-row Ed Slater says he is taking each day as it comes after being diagnosed with motor neurone disease (MND).
The 34-year-old announced his retirement from sport with immediate effect in July after making the news of his diagnosis public. And now the former Leicester Tigers lock has opened up about the reality of living with MND.
"I feel like I'm fighting against something that is progressing," he told the BBC. "But I've got to be conscious not to be waking up each day looking for something to be worse.
"I've got to take each day as it comes but there are signs. When I spoke to the players here (at Gloucester) I said I need normality. I won't shy away from it but at the end of the day I'm a normal person.
"It was month after month, my arm got weaker and weaker, my grip became weaker and I went to Oxford and was diagnosed with MND," Slater added.
"Part of me had prepared for that, partly because of the weakness and partly because of the symptoms.
"I know very close friends of mine who have lost a family member to it, was able to speak to them about his experiences and so I prepared myself.
"I'm not saying that makes it easier when you're diagnosed - it absolutely doesn't - but in some ways it had been 11 months of torment, different symptoms, not knowing, looking for different reasons, and to have definitive diagnosis - it sounds strange to say this - but at least it gave me an answer.
"Not an answer I wanted but I can't change it. My attitude is to get on with things. There are difficult things in life, not many things harder than that, but you have to face challenges head on.
"I don't think too far into the future and I take each day as it comes. I find that's a peaceful place for me and keeps me in best spirits as I can."
All Blacks wait on injuries to Barrett duo
New Zealand are waiting on the fitness of brothers Beauden and Jordie Barrett ahead of the All Blacks' second Test against South Africa this weekend.
The All Blacks suffered heaviest defeat to the Springboks since 1928 as they fell to a 26-10 defeat in the opening match of the Rugby Championship in Mbombela. The nature of the defeat, the All Blacks' fifth in six matches, only served to pile the pressure on both coaches and players.
And thing could get worse, with New Zealand sweating over the fitness of influential Barrett brothers, Beauden and Jordie. Fly-half Beauden is nursing a neck injury after being taken out in mid-air by Boks wing Kurt-Lee Arendse, while Jordie was forced off with an ankle knock.
"Jordie has a bad ankle. (Beauden) went for a scan on his neck, which is clear. We will make a decision on that later in the week, but he is still a bit sore," Ian Foster told reporters afterwards.
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