It's the fifth instalment of the #CasualtyWard and we have every injury as it drops! Take a look through the list and share it with your friends (or keep the golden information to yourself).
Returned from Injuries in Rd 5:
Brodie Retallick (Chiefs) - A Finger in the eye during training before round 3 cost him one game but he made his presence felt with a 2 try effort on his comeback. Marty Mckenzie (Chiefs) - Missed Rd 3 with concussion. Came off the bench. Ash Dixon (Highlanders) - Played off the bench after missing last week with a back injury.
Adam Coleman (Rebels) - Ruled out of Rd 4 with a bruised sternum. Played against the Waratah's but looked sore throughout. Sekope Kepu (Waratahs) – Back Rd 5 after suspension and a calf injury kept him out of the start of the season. Ned Hanigan (Ted Flanigan) (Waratahs) - Cleared from an AC joint injury to play this week but is apparently under an injury cloud again this week. Rob Simmons (Waratahs) - Came back from his small quad tear and bagged a try. Mitchell Short (Waratahs) - His ruptured ACL was actually only minor ligament damage. Scored another try in a man of the match performance in his first start. Will likely revert to the bench or out of the squad all together after the bye. Ruan Smith (Reds) - Left the Sunwolves on compassionate leave when his mum felt ill and returned to Queensland. Had his first hit out off the bench this week. Andrew Ready (Reds) - Back from the abyss and took his spot on the bench. Hosea Saumaki (Sunwolves) - Twisted his knee in training before Rd 3. It definitely didn't bother him when he ran through half the team to score from 55 metres out! Wimpie Van Der Walt (Sunwolves) - Came back at lock from his groin pain issue.
Jean-Luc du Preez (Sharks) – Made his long awaited comeback off the bench from his ankle injury. Made an immediate impact after coming on. Pieter-Steph du Toit (Stormers) – Concussion and illness caused him to miss two weeks. Looked rock solid playing at seven for the Stormers. Cobus Wiese (Stormers) - Had a shoulder injury in Rd 3, came off the bench but didn't do much. Burger Odendaal (Bulls) - Withdrawn pregame Rd 3 because of a rib injury and then unexpectedly missed Rd 4. Looked mostly back to his normal self this week.
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New Injuries Rd 5:
Liam Squire (Highlanders) - Fractured his thumb and will be out for up to six weeks. Back between rounds 9-11. Mike Delany (Crusaders) - Ruled out on Friday the 16th before the game with a knee injury. Matt Todd (Crusaders) - Rib injury. Will miss this week at least. Seta Tamanivalu (Crusaders) - Ruled out after Wednesday's training this week with a groin strain. Vaea Fifita (Hurricanes) - Will miss round 6 with a minor shoulder injury. Tiaan Falcon (Chiefs) - Carrying "a niggle" so not playing rd 6. Liam Messam (Chiefs) - Carrying "a niggle" so not playing rd 6. Mitchell Brown (Chiefs) - Ruptured ACL, had an operation and out for the season. Fin Hoeata (Chiefs) - His shoulder needs a reconstruction so he will be out for the season. Sonny Bill Williams (Blues) - Has had an X-ray on a hand injury. No news on the results Leni Apisai (Blues) - Concussion. Likely fine after their bye this week.
Jono Lance (Reds) - Came off at half time with concussion. Jake Gordon (Waratahs) - Concussion Lalakai Foketi (Waratahs) - Injured his leg. No more information than that. Ned Hanigan (Waratahs) - Injured his shoulder. No more information than that. Dane Haylett-Petty (Rebels) - Concussion, looked like a bad one. He will not play in Rd 6.
Travis Ismael (Bulls) - Concussion, but named to play this week. Andre Warner (Bulls) - Concussion, has been flown home so he won't feature in round 6. RG Snyman (Bulls) - Facial fracture, has been flown home and will miss 4-6 weeks which puts him back between rounds 9 and 11. Conrad Van Vuuren (Bulls) - Cited after the game for a swinging arm to the head of Damien McKenzie. Will miss 3 weeks so he should be available in round 9. Andre Esterhuizen (Sharks) - Came off with a right ankle injury. Ross Cronje (Lions) - Rib injury. Will miss a week, expected back for Round 7. Andries Ferreira (Lions) - Back spasms. Will miss a week, expected back for Round 7. Jacobie Adriaanse (Lions) - Sprained ankle. Will miss a week, expected back for Round 7. Santiago González Iglesias (Jaguares) - Got his head on the wrong side of a tackle and came off. They were looking at his left shoulder but he may have just been another concussion.
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Likely back for this week (Rd 6):
Ryan Crotty (Crusaders) - Concussion in Rd 4. Likely back this week. Sam Whitelock (Crusaders) - Concussion in Rd 4. Originally named to play last week but pulled out late with more symptoms. Should play this week Tom Sanders (Crusaders) - Makes his comeback via the bench from a fractured ankle in the preseason. Jeffery Toomaga-Allen (Hurricanes) - Had a hamstring Injury, playing in the Hurricanes development game during the Rd 5 bye. Toni Pulu (Chiefs) - Listed as available for selection in round 5 but they chose to give him another weeks rest. Taleni Seu (Chiefs) - Left out against the Bulls with a thigh injury. He makes his comeback this week in the 8 jersey.
Angus Cottrell (Rebels) - Missed this week with the flu but straight back into the starting side for this week. Scott Higginbotham (Reds) - Red carded for his shoulder to the head. Copped a 3 game ban so we should see him by round 6. UPDATE he has been taken on the tour to play in Rd 6. Jaba Bregvadeze (Sunwolves) - Knee injury Rd 2. Not going on tour. Should play Rd 6. Tim Lafaele (Sunwolves) - Named at outside centre after recovering from his Concussion. Akihito Yamada (Sunwolves) - I assume he is now free of his concussion. Looks like he is still not in the first 23. Yu Tamura (Sunwolves) - Back from his left knee meniscal tear. Starting at 10 this week.
Scarra Ntubeni (Stormers) – Hamstring injury in preseason. Back in full training so could be back soon. SP Marais (Stormers) - Picked up a rib injury in round 4. Won't play the Blues or Reds but should be back after that. Daniel du Plessis (Stormers) – Shoulder Injury – Play in Rd 5 with the western province side. Dan Kriel (Stormers) - Played Western Province in rd 5 coming back from his foot injury. Jano Vermaak (Stormers) - Played Western Province in rd 5 coming back from his knee injury. Ali Vermaak (Stormers) - Back in full training. BEAST (Sharks) - Pulled pregame last week with a groin injury. Named to return this week. Leonardo Senatore (Jaguares) - Concussion in Rd 2, should be back. Ramiro Moyano (Jaguares) - Tore his hamstring after Rd 1. Back training with the team but it doesn't look like he play round 6. Jerónimo de la Fuente (Jaguares) – Had a muscle tear – Played for Duendes in his first game back for Rd 5. We expect him to make his comeback for Rd 6 but it sounds like Ezcurra has being training in the 12 jersey ahead of him.
[getty src="651997322" width="594" height="396" tld="com.au"] Ongoing Injury List:
NEW ZEALAND Highlanders Richard Buckman – Aggravated an old neck injury – The medical team has said they will let the injury settle until after Rd 4 and then reassess him. James Lentjes – Shoulder injury in last preseason game – back in April Thomas Umaga-Jensen - Shoulder injury. Dan Pryor - Hamstring injury.
Hurricanes Dane Coles – ACL Start of December, return in “4-6 months” so probably getting a synthetic LARS graft. These have higher rupture rates. So he has a higher risk of reinjury and will probably be undercooked on return. AVOID. Nehe Milner-Skudder – Shoulder reconstruction – Back in May. Alex Fidow - Injured against the Jaguares, not sure what he has done. Toby Smith - Came off for a blood bin in Rd 2 but did not return. Chris Boyd was "Not sure" if he would play in Rd 3 (he didn't), so we expect him back this week. Wes Goosen - Missed out on round 6 with his ankle injury. Should be back very soon.
Chiefs Chiefs All Blacks all to miss the May 20th game against the Sharks while in camp. Mitchell Graham – Out for first 6 weeks, had screws removed from old leg fracture operation Nepo Laulala - Fractured left forearm requiring surgery. Out for 8-12 weeks (30th April to 28th May). Dominic Bird - Came off with a shoulder and had his arm in a sling in round 2. His shoulder is still being assessed at this stage. Charlie Ngatai - Medial knee ligament. The coach expects him back for Rd 7! Kane Hames - Still no more info about his "mystery illness". Shaun Stevenson – Injured his knee in the Rd 3 pregame warm up. UPDATE before Rd 6 - He has had a clean up (arthroscopy) and is expected out for 4-6 weeks (roughly 15-29th April). Sam McNicol – Recurrent Concussions – going through the normal protocols but who knows when he will be back. Crusaders Owen Franks – Achilles rupture in September for NZ- Targeting 21st April (Rd 10) Israel Dagg – Knee Injury from 2017. Targeting 21st April Rd 10 Joe Moody – Shoulder injury – Targeting 21st April Rd 10 Kieran Read - Coming back from 2017 back surgery. Originally tipped to play in Rd 10 after their bye it is not looking very ujnlikely. Apparently now no official date can be given on his return. Not good! Richie Mo'unga - Broken jaw which required surgery. Should be out for 6-8 weeks (Rds 10-11). Sounds like he is a good chance to play round 10. Pete Samu - Came off in Rd 3 with a shoulder injury. Was expected to miss two weeks but he wasn't named in Rd 7.
Blues Blake Gibson – Shoulder injury, Likely still 7 weeks away (7/3/18) so roughly round 11. Dalton Papali’i – Ruled out for six weeks with a hand fracture. Potentially back Rd 7 against the Sharks. Matt Moulds – Knee Kara Pryor – Ankle Isaac Salmon – Elbow Glenn Preston - Limped off with a calf tear. Likely back after the bye to play Rd 7. Augustine Pulu - Came off with a foot injury. Expected to be out for 5-6 weeks which puts his return around Rds 9-10. Alex Hodgman - Injured his arm and has been flown home because he "won't be fit for this week".
AUSTRALIA Waratahs Jack Dempsey – Hamstring Injury – Back week 9 Cameron Clarke – Torn Hamstring in Brizzy 10s, in doubt for Rd 1, Likely Rd 4-5 Nick Phipps – Calf injury Feb 7th, Due back after their bye to play the Brumbies in Rd 7. Jake Gordon - Ruled out of Rd 5 with concussion. Will have to contest with Phipps for the starting spot after the bye.
Brumbies David Pocock – Knee Op – Back Rd 7. Rob Valentini - Medial ligament (knee) injury - Had surgery 28th Feb. Hopefully 6-8 weeks. Could be gone for 12 weeks! This would have his comeback date set at Round 14 away to the Lions. Sam Carter - Concussion against the Rebels in Rd 4. Should be back after the bye. Robbie Abel - Recovering from niggling rib problems. Will hopefully be back in round 7.
Reds Karmichael Hunt – UPDATE: Given a 4 game suspension after his drug trial that as of round 6 has finished. He will need to get some training sessions under his belt but he could be back as early as round 7. George Smith – Back surgery – back April 7th against Brumbies In Rd 8 Quade Cooper – unwanted by reds but still contracted – unlikely to see him play this season. Izaia Perese – Partially torn his ACL against their trial against Fiji. Hopefully back for round 8 at the earliest. Beware, rehab times for partial ACL’s are not an exact science! Lukhan Tui - Tip tackle on Genia and then drove him into the ground. Copped a 3 game ban (back Rd 6). UPDATE: didn't go on tour so won't play until Rd 7.
Rebels Jordan Uelese - Minor hamstring injury ruled him out of round 5 and now 6.
[getty src="644847836" width="594" height="384" tld="com.au"] SOUTH AFRICA Sharks Leolin Zas – Not coming back well from injury – flown to Switzerland to try and get better. Dan Du Preez – Shoulder ligament injury in Rd 1. Meant to be reassessed for round 5 but now will miss the Australasian tour. Expected back Rd 9. Philip van der Walt - Ankle ligament sprain before Rd 3, will miss the Australasian tour. Maybe back Rd 9. Jeremy Ward - Not on tour, will miss the Australasian tour so out until at least Rd 9. Michael Claassens - Not on tour, will miss the Australasian tour so out until at least Rd 9.
Stormers Frans Malherbe – Neck Injury – no return date set (as of 15th Feb) – at least missing until after the tour (Rd 5) but making "good progress". Back in full training. Jean-Luc du Plessis – Groin operation on Dec 1st. Now back into full training and should be available within the next couple of weeks (7/3/18). Back in full training. Eben Etzebeth – Shoulder nerve injury, UPDATE 20th March: Rehab is on schedule, aiming to be back in round 12. He is also rehabbing an old back injury. Bongi Mbonambi – Burst appendix before Rd 1 – was expected to play Rd 5 but he has had a further operation and now won't be able to train for another 3 months! This means we might see him from early June at the earliest. JD Schickerling - Suffered a torn pectoral muscle against the Crusaders, has been flown home from the tour. Out for four months (Early July). Juarno Augustus - progressing well from a long term injury. Seabelo Senatla - Tore his groin in round 3. Out for six weeks. Sergeal Petersen - Injured his MCL (knee) up for Western Province & has been sidelined for four months. Could be back around the international window.
Lions Courtnall Skosan – ACL in January – Originally gone until start of July/Aug at earliest – now saying ~10weeks so could be back mid April. This only works if they are planning on not reconstructing his ACL, which is a huge risk in rugby union. Avoid him like the plague! Ruan Combrinck – Shoulder surgery – return Mid April Warren Whiteley - Left knee Grade 2 PCL injury in Rd 4. Expected to be out for a month which could put him out until after their Rd 9 bye.
Bulls Ruan Steenkamp – Knee – back mid feb? Jamba Ulengo – Ongoing Patella Tendon issue- Had a small operation in Sweden and now expected to be out for 8 weeks (16th April). This would be Rd 10 after their bye. Jannes Kirsten – Played the final on his injury comeback, won’t be available until Rd 3. Mitchell said he wanted him to get his fitness right so probably won't stop. Franco Naude – Undergone shoulder surgery and will be out for four months from Rd 2 - Roughly Rd 15. Nicholas De Jager - Fractured rib in Rd 4 - should be out for four to six weeks.
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ARGENTINA/JAPAN Jaguares Tomás Cubelli – Fractured neck vertebra, back end of april/start of may Matías Moroni – Shoulder operation – back early april? Tomás Lezana - UPDATE 9th March they announced he was having an operation that would keep him out for two months.
Sunwolves Kenki Fukuoka – Injured for 4 weeks – Recovering from knee surgery. This was announced weeks ago so he is surely back soon Sam Wykes - "Severe concussion", will go through the protocols to play but isn't on tour, wont play until Rd 6. Shinya Makabe - Sprained ankle. No word on a return date. Gerhard Van Den Heever - Groin pain - being managed. Jason Emery - Surgery for a broken thumb on Thursday 1st March out for 8-10 weeks. Hayden Parker - Hamstring tear/ knee injury? I'm hearing different things. Isn't on tour, wont play until Rd 6. OUT FOR THE SEASON:
Otere Black (Blues) – ACL reconstruction Reggie Goodes (Hurricanes) – Retired due to concussion Tim Nanai-Williams (Chiefs) – Injured shoulder in final trial against Brumbies – having surgery and will be out for the season. Atu Moli (Chiefs) - Had a complication with a quad haematoma which required surgery. Ruled out for the season.
Nick Frisby (Reds) – His services will not be needed. Markus Vanzati (Reds) – His services will not be needed. Ben McCalman (Waratahs) – 4th Fractured Scapula (Shoulder blade) in 2 years, Waratahs want a medical before signing him. Looks like they didn't end up signing him. Josh Mann-Rea (Brumbies) - Tore his hamstring off the bone in round 4, has now had surgery and will be out for the season.
Coenie Oosthuizen (Sharks) – ACL reconstruction Jaco Kriel (Lions) – Off season shoulder op – was expected back for Rd 4 but reinjured his shoulder, is having ANOTHER operation and is expected out for a further six months! Looks like he is done for the season. Rudy Paige (Bulls) – cut from the squad Enrique Pieretto (Jaguares) – ACL Reconstruction
Have we missed something? Drop a comment or tweet and let us know.
Written by Harrison Dale