Colin Slade has been called back into the All Blacks as replacement for injured playmaker Dan Carter, who has a cracked calf bone and will likely miss the first month of the Rugby Championship.

Five-eighth Slade returns after standing in for Carter while he missed the three-Test series against England in June as he paced his return from a rugby sabbatical.

Carter picked up the injury, a small crack in his upper fibula, in the Crusaders’ loss to the Waratahs in the Super Rugby final in Sydney on Saturday.

The injury, which could take up to four weeks to heal, means Carter will likely miss the first two All Blacks matches of the Rugby Championship against Australia in Sydney on August 16 and in Auckland a week later.