Crusaders captain to miss clash against Reds after failing to recover from concussion

CRUSADERS captain Kieran Read will miss Sunday's match against Queensland as he battles to make a full recovery from concussion.

Kieran Read will miss Sunday’s clash with the Reds.

CRUSADERS captain Kieran Read will miss Sunday's Super Rugby match against Queensland as he battles to make a full recovery from concussion suffered last month.

No. 8 Read, named the best player in the world last year, suffered his second concussion of the season against the Chiefs on April 19 and has not played since.

The 28-year-old All Black will not feature for the Crusaders in Brisbane after coach Todd Blackadder made an early call to rule him out of the match.

“We always knew that Kieran was a 50-50 call for this week and although he's making good progress, we would rather not leave it to later in the week to make a decision,” Blackadder said.

He said Read, who was also concussed against the Hurricanes in March forcing him to miss a match, was recovering well, but his symptoms have not completely cleared.

“He has received two knocks in the past month and we are taking no risks,” Blackadder said.

The Crusaders side to face the Reds will be named on Thursday.

Originally published as Crusaders captain to miss clash against Reds after failing to recover from concussion