Lock Sam Whitelock has a couple of days to persuade the All Blacks coaches he's fit to play Ireland in Dublin this weekend.
Whitelock sprained his ankle against Australia on October 22 in Auckland, and must pass his first full training sessions this week to be available for selection again.
The 82-cap lock was confident.
"I've been doing the right things over the last couple of weeks to try and get myself back to being 100 per cent," Whitelock said on Monday.
"I just have to train fully, and if there's anything that will come up it will come up in that. I'm feeling pretty good."
To have first-choice lock Whitelock back with the returning Brodie Retallick would be a major boost for New Zealand's chances of avenging their first loss to Ireland nine days ago in Chicago.
Retallick was concussed against Australia, and also missed the Ireland match. But he proved his fitness in a 25-minute shift in the 10-try defeat of Italy last Saturday in Rome.
Shorn of Whitelock, Retallick and Luke Romano, who left the tour because of a family bereavement, the All Blacks converted flanker Jerome Kaino into a lock and the experiment was ruthlessly exploited by Ireland in lineouts and mauls.
"There's a lot of things we have to improve from Chicago," Whitelock said.
"But it's right across the board, because you can't just focus on one thing because something else will fall away. We have to be aware of it but we can't be obsessed with it."
The All Blacks didn't learn of the earthquakes that shook New Zealand's South Island overnight until they arrived in Dublin, where they reached out to family and friends.
"The most important thing right now is that everyone is safe back in New Zealand, that is our first thought," assistant coach Ian Foster said.
