Ben Smith suffering from vertigo, not concussion

All Blacks Coach Steve Hansen delivered a medical update for his team’s vice-captain which was positive, having been cleared of any concussion concerns.

Testing over the last week has revealed Smith suffers from a form of vertigo.

An inner ear problem left the world class fullback feeling dizzy at times, something which had been diagnosed in the past as concussion.

When the 31-year-old left the field early in the first Test against the British and Irish Lions two weeks ago, it was thought to be his third case of concussion for the year.

Hansen and Smith’s teammate Israel Dagg spoke then about the uncertainty surrounding the 63-Test veteran’s future and whether he should consider putting his young family ahead of rugby.

“He doesn’t have a concussion problem,” Hansen said.

“That’s great news for Bender and (wife) Katie.

“It takes the weight off their shoulders knowing that what we’d deemed to be concussion two or three times this year was actually another problem.

“They’ve been able to identify and start to medicate and fix it, which is great news.”

Smith joined the All Blacks team at training in Auckland on Thursday.