One of the biggest debates surrounding the forthcoming Test series in New Zealand should be resolved tomorrow when the All Blacks' squad for their sole warm-up game, against Fiji in Auckland next Friday, is announced. Basically, it will be known then whether Justin Marshall will be a central figure against the Lions or if his Test career is at an end.

In a nutshell, Graham Henry and the All Blacks management must either take the short-term view of employing the 77-Test scrumhalf strictly on current form after what has widely been considered Marshall's finest Super 12 campaign, or cast him adrift now as there is no future in picking a player bound for Leeds at the end of the series.

Still embittered at being overlooked for what would have been one final northern hemisphere tour last autumn, the picture has been muddied by Marshall's extraordinary broadside at Henry and co over their lack of communication. Henry was moved to express his surprise at Marshall's comments and it was only since his valedictory win with the Crusaders in Saturday's Super 12 final against the NSW Waratahs that Marshall finally expressed his resolve to play against the Lions.

"Now that I've got that behind me and we've got an exciting series coming up, I feel that within myself I'm in the right frame of mind and I would love to be involved in the Lions series," he said on national radio.

"I always said I wanted to get through to the point we got to on Saturday and hopefully, finish on a real high with the Crusaders and then go on from there. That was my sole focus leading up to the Super 12. I didn't have any thoughts anywhere else. I was not turning my back on the All Black jersey."

Marshall is one four Crusaders players rested from today's All Blacks' trial in Napier, and the New Zealand Maoris' match against Fiji in Suva, on foot of which the 22-man squad for the All Blacks' game against Fiji will be announced tomorrow.

There might also be some pointers to other selectorial posers facing Henry, for example whether to play Mils Muliaina in his customary fullback role, or Leon McDonald, with Muliaina partnering captain Tana Umaga in the centre, where he had been named in the trial before both were withdrawn.

The debate also rages over whether the All Blacks will persist with the slightly out-of-touch Joe Rokocoko (cleverly re-routed to the New Zealand Sevens for the London and Paris legs of the IRB series to help him fill his boots with some tries) and Doug Howlett, or promote the Super 12s' leading try scorer Rico Gear and Sitiveni Sivivatu.

Apart from who ultimately partners Chris Jack in the secondrow, the pack looks more straightforward provided hooker Anton Oliver recovers from his recently torn calf for Otago.