Sky Sport has sent the All Blacks rumour mill spinning wildly, apparently tweeting - then deleting - details of a post-coronavirus Bledisloe Cup test schedule before it has been announced.
The graphic showed dates for already confirmed fixtures, including Super Rugby Aotearoa, Mitre 10 Cup and a North v South clash, which will be screened on the pay TV network.
But it also included dates for four tests against Australia on October 10, 17 and November 1, 8, none of which have been officially released.
The tweet and graphic were quickly deleted.
The spacing of the matches is significant, with New Zealand projected to host the first two a week apart, then a two-week quarantine period before facing the Wallabies across the Tasman.
The COVID-19 pandemic has wreaked havoc on international sport, including the All Blacks schedule, which would have seen Scotland and Wales visit this month.
The Rugby Championship, featuring New Zealand, Australia, South Africa and Argentina, has also been suspended, but with trans-Tasman interaction ramping up, the traditional Bledisloe rivalry seems alive and well.
Newshub has been told the leaked dates represent just one of several options being considered for the national rugby team, which have also been linked to a bizarre cross-code encounter with the Kangaroos rugby league side in early December.
