Ireland have refused to rule Conor Murray out of making a return for the clash with the All Blacks in Dublin according to reports.
The Munster scrum-half has been recovering from a neck injury and has yet to play this season.
Ireland head coach Joe Schmidt has been working with some of his senior players who have been carrying knocks including Murray and forwards coach Simon Easterby said Murray's progress is still being assessed.
"No, he hasn’t been ruled out," said Easterby.
"A little bit like some of the others, he’s been on a longer-term injury list but he’s in camp this week. He’s been in Carton House and we’ll probably assess him as we go through the series.
"Everyone that was selected in that squad is not necessarily fit now but they're potentially available throughout the series. We'll make decisions on each individual case as we go through the series.
"But with Conor it's giving him an opportunity to get back in with us, working with some treatment but also there's still potential."
Ireland will face New Zealand on 17 November in Aviva Stadium.
