All Blacks baby boom rules Savea, Laulala out of Wallabies test

WELLINGTON (Reuters) - All Blacks number eight Ardie Savea and prop Nepo Laulala are on paternity leave and will miss the Rugby Championship opener against Australia next weekend, coach Ian Foster said on Sunday.

Both players were absent when the squad boarded their flight across the Tasman Sea on Sunday but Joe Moody was in the party and Foster was upbeat about the experienced prop being fit to play at Sydney's Olympic Stadium next Sunday.