Dynamic winger Sevu Reece will watch this year's Rugby World Cup from the sidelines after the All Black suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury.
Reece was hurt a fortnight ago in the Crusaders' Super Rugby win against Blues, coming off just after halftime.
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"Sevu injured his knee and has had scans which have confirmed an ACL rupture," the Crusaders said in a statement.
"He now he will undergo surgery to repair this. Unfortunately this rules Sevu out of rugby for the rest of 2023."
On Wednesday morning, Crusaders coach Scott Robertson said an assessment of the 26-year-old's knee produced the worst news. "Sevu's out for the whole of the 2023 season," Robertson told journalists in Christchurch.
"He's back in 24. We really feel for him.
"It's a hard one. For him and the whole club ... he's so important for us and we really feel for him.
"A lot of work will get him back to where he was beforehand - being a world class wing."
Reece debuted for the All Blacks in 2019 after topping the Super Rugby try-scoring charts, going on to be first-choice at that year's World Cup on the right wing.
The Fiji-born 26-year-old was again the highest try-scorer in last year's Super Rugby competition, and was considered a certain pick for Ian Foster's squad for this year's tournament in France.
