Ikitau ruled out of Australia's Sydney rematch with New Zealand

Australia centre Len Ikitau will miss the second Bledisloe Cup match in Sydney on October 17 after failing a head injury assessment, The Sydney Morning Herald reported following Australia's 50-19 loss to New Zealand.

Ikitau left the Auckland match after about 30 minutes. Isaac Henry and Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii finished as the midfield pairing. The newspaper said they could retain those positions with Hunter Paisami serving a suspension.

New Zealand's Scott Barrett also failed a head injury assessment, leaving his availability uncertain. Leroy Carter injured his left ankle while scoring a try and was considered unlikely to play in Sydney, according to the report.

Carter was injured during Rob Valetini's tackle from behind. New Zealand coach Dave Rennie compared it to a hip-drop tackle but said he did not consider Valetini's actions intentional. World Rugby has set November 1 as the date an explicit ban on that technique takes effect. That amendment was not yet in force during the match.