Carter Makes Successful Return From Injury

New Zealand fly-half Dan Carter made a successful comeback from injury in a provincial match on Sunday.

Carter, the world’s most prolific international points scorer, played 40 minutes for Canterbury against Southland, his first action since fracturing his leg during the Super 15 final in August.

A big-money move to French club Racing Metro could beckon after next year’s tournament in England.

“It’s just a matter of building into things and hopefully I’ll get three games or so for Canterbury, work my way into form and get a bit of confidence back.”

Carter scored 11 points before coming off at half-time against Southland.

“It’s just a matter of building into things and hopefully I’ll get three games or so for Canterbury, work my way into form and get a bit of confidence back,” he said before the game.

Carter is not scheduled to return to the All Blacks until they play Australia in Brisbane on October 18.

He was injured after playing only a handful of games at the end of the Super competition when he returned from a seven-month break from rugby

The break was intended to preserve his body through to the World Cup.

Since the 2011 World Cup, Carter has only played in 15 of the All Blacks’ 36 Tests – allowing Aaron Cruden and Beauden Barrett to develop as fly-halves.

Although Carter, the world player of the year in 2005 and 2012, has appeared in three World Cups, he has yet to play in a final.

He was in the All Blacks teams knocked out of the 2003 and 2007 World Cups. Although he received a Cup winners’ medal in 2011 he never felt he earned it after an injury ruled him out of the tournament in the pool stages.