The Highlanders confirmed today that All Blacks fullback Ben Smith is set to be side-lined for 6-8 weeks after sustaining a hamstring injury last Saturday against the Chiefs.
Late in the second half Smith hyper-extended his leg after slipping into a big tackle by Chiefs flanker Luke Jacobson.
The 32-year-old's hamstring strain could rule him out for the remainder of the Super Rugby season, meaning last Saturday's 31-31 draw could have been his last match for the Otago Super Rugby franchise.
"He's had a high hamstring strain, he's going to be out for 6-8 weeks," said Highlanders assistant coach Glenn Delaney.
"Normal sort of process for those sorts of things (injury), classic rugby incident where he just got caught in a tackle and overextended.
"He'll be back as quick as he can with the right rehab."
Smith has played more than 150 Super Rugby games for the Highlanders and will head to France to play for Pau after this year's Rugby World Cup in Japan.
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