After being the notable omission in the first All Blacks' squad of the year, the door is now open for Chiefs fullback Shaun Stevenson to make his test debut.
On Sunday, the All Blacks confirmed the pair of Will Jordan and Leicester Fainga'anuku will not travel to Argentina for next weekend's Rugby Championship opener against Los Pumas.
Jordan, 25, is being managed after battling an inner-ear vestibular issue since last year's northern hemisphere tour.
Meanwhile, 23-year-old Fainga'anuku won't travel due to a calf injury, leaving a shortage of players in the outside backs.
The two withdrawals leave Stevenson, Caleb Clarke, Emoni Narawa and Mark Telea as specialist outside backs to face Argentina.
Stevenson, 26, was initially listed in the All Blacks' Rugby Championship plans as injury cover for Telea, who picked up a knock in the Blues' Super Rugby season-ending loss to the Crusaders.
Speaking as his squad was initially named, coach Ian Foster outlined his reasons for leaving Super Rugby's form fullback out of his plans in the first place.
"We've got pretty specific job requirements on both sides of the ball," Foster told Sky Sport. "On the attack side, he's proven to be outstanding. He should be very proud of his year.
"We've seen a massive improvement in the defensive structural stuff - the tackle and the contact work - but we still want to see a bit more in that space.
"The fact he's going to come in and be with us, maybe for those first two tests, is a great opportunity to get a good read of that."
Stevenson pressed his case even further in the Super Rugby Pacific final. In 80 minutes, he scored one try, to go with 104 running metres, one offload and two tackles.
Those numbers come on the back of a season that saw Stevenson play 15 of 17 matches for the Chiefs, averaging 71 minutes per game with 12 tries scored.
Should Foster and fellow selectors opt for a specialist - likely on the right wing - Stevenson or Chiefs teammate Emoni Narawa stand tall as two contenders alongside Telea, if fit.
However, should the All Blacks opt for a utility player, there is no shortage of options.
The duo of Beauden Barrett and Damian McKenzie are also more than capable options in the No.15 jersey, despite being listed as first-fives.
Conversely, midfielders Jordie Barrett, Rieko Ioane, Braydon Ennor and Dallas McLeod all provide cover in the outside backs.
The All Blacks depart for Argentina on Sunday, as the first side of the year will be named on Friday (NZ time).
