Injured All Black Tuipulotu taking long road to recovery

New Zealand lock Patrick Tuipulotu may be out of action until May as he recovers from a shoulder injury that ruled him out of the All Blacks' season-ending tour.

The 56-test forward will have a late start to the Auckland Blues' Super Rugby campaign with caution over a complex AC (acromioclavicular) injury.

"(The shoulder) looked like it was hanging off because my AC joint was sticking out so bad," Tuipulotu, 32, told New Zealand media with his right arm in a sling.

"The surgeon is quite pedantic about actually getting it right. I'm pretty keen on that."

Tuipulotu had a bruising season, missing six weeks after suffering a facial fracture in his forehead during the Rugby Championship.

His All Blacks teammate Ofa Tu'ungafasi hopes to be available for the start of the Super Rugby season in February after his 2025 campaign was all but wiped out following surgery to remove bone spurs in his neck.

"I’m quite lucky. I didn't do my injury through a tackle or a scrum," said the 33-year-old prop. "It was more wear and tear."