He will be one of the two additions to the 30-man Highlanders team for next year's Super 15.
The Highlanders have already named 28 players but coach Jamie Joseph was not able to name the two extra recruits until the official launch today.
But he did admit Ash Parker was one of the contenders.
"We are looking for a utility forward who can fill the loose forward role and an inside back who can cover 10 and 15," Joseph said.
He is 1.87m tall, weighs 110kg and has the ruggedness that Joseph likes in his team.
He has a background in rugby league, a game that demands an ability to tackle. He grew up in Wellington and played league for New Zealand age-grade teams before being signed by Wellington rugby.
He signed to play for the Newcastle Knights but, after being scratched from the 2006 Junior Kiwis squad because he played for his St Bernard's College first XV, he left the 13-man code.
Parker, who is studying commerce at the University of Canterbury, signed with Canterbury in 2009 and was in the Crusaders wider training group last season.
The utility back could be Rei Codey, from North Harbour, who can play at fullback or first five-eighth, or versatile Southlander James Wilson.
The Highlanders have lost All Black Tom Donnelly, who has been recruited by the Crusaders.
The Super 15 coaches used to haggle over the final spots in their squad at the New Zealand Rugby Union headquarters in Wellington. However, the five coaches agreed on their last few spots during a phone hook-up yesterday instead.
The five New Zealand squads, which are limited to 32 players, will be named today.
Joseph learnt some valuable lessons from last season's campaign.
"We need 30 experienced players who can play at the level that is expected," he said.
The Highlanders have a strong squad but this year, Joseph did not have enough depth to maintain a high level of performance throughout the competition. The team was tired in the last few games.
"The Crusaders have the depth and can rest players during the long season," Joseph said. "They perform at the end because they can rest players during a long season.
"We will have to take each game on its merits and create confidence and momentum right from the start of the season." This year the Highlanders over-performed in some of their matches.
"But when it came to the crunch, we under-performed," Joseph said. "In games we were expected to win, we came up short. Our mind-set has to be a lot different next year. There will be more pressure on the team to get results."
The fans expect the Highlanders to reach the playoffs.
"That will look after itself if we do the little things right," Joseph said.
Only two players from the 30 that will be named today are from Dunedin.
"The first task is to get them used to living in the town," Joseph said. "They come from different provincial unions and from the All Blacks and it will take time to get them thinking like Highlanders.
"If we get those things right, as we did last season, we start to create a trust among each other." The success of the World Cup had reminded Joseph what rugby fervour was all about.
"I hope we can continue this into the new year," he said. "We have guys coming to Dunedin like Andrew Hore, Hosea Gear and Tamati Ellison, who have played on the big stage.
"It would be great to get the guys who used to travel from Tarras, Patearoa and other places in Central Otago to come and support the team again."
The Highlanders squad assembles in Dunedin on November 21 for pre-Christmas strength and conditioning training, but the six All Blacks will not join it until January 9.
The squad returns in early January and will have pre-season games against the Crusaders, Chiefs and Blues.
