Monday’s rugby news has some good news for injured Brumbies, a fit Palu, a resurgent Burgess and a troubling injury study out of England.
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Positive signs for Brumbies
The Brumbies have received some much-needed positive injury news after returning former Wallabies Pat McCabe and David Pocock both went down over the weekend. Initial scans have cleared McCabe of a recurrence of his broken neck and Laurie Fisher has indicated that his playing status is ‘normal’ leading into Friday’s game against the Hurricanes. It was just the inside centre’s second Super Rugby game back from breaking his neck twice in the past 15 months.
There were also positive signs for Pocock, who was feared to have reinjured his reconstructed knee with 10 minutes remaining. Although he awaits scans today, Fisher has said, ‘He’s got no real swelling in that knee,’ adding, ‘At this stage there’s no great concern.’ [/one_half]
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Praise for Palu
Waratahs coach Michael Cheika has praised the barnstorming form of Wycliff Palu, viewing the side’s number 8 as a ‘mirror for our team’ and its early season success. Palu himself attributed his impressive play to a full pre-season without disruption from injury. ‘The last time I was in this shape was 2008-2009 and that was before the knee injury and all those consecutive injuries,’ said the former Wallaby.
Cheika also played down the hype surrounding the star-studded Waratahs, emphasising the need for improvement throughout the season. ‘We just need to get ourselves ready to play that game and then one game at a time develop what’s lacked for us over many years, and that’s consistency,’ he said. [/one_half]
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Burgess impresses Test selectors
Melbourne Rebels halfback Luke Burgess has put his hand up for a return to the Test arena with his impressive role in the team’s 35-14 win over the Cheetahs. Burgess was awarded Man of the Match in the surprise victory after giving great service to Bryce Hegardy and constantly threatening the opposition with his sniping runs.
The 30 year old has made a strong start to his first full Super Rugby Season since he left the Waratahs at the end of 2011 to play for Toulouse. Burgess is keen to add to the 37 Test caps he earned before the move, but prioritised the resurgence of the Rebels, saying, ‘Everyone’s been working really hard and you’ve got to run with the momentum that we’ve developed.’ [/one_half]
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New study into rugby injuries
20 professional players in England are forced to retire prematurely every year due to injury, according to England’s Rugby Players’ Association. RPA chief executive Damian Hopley has also warned that the figure is certain to rise. ‘Retirements through injury have risen by more than 80 per cent over the past three years and show no signs of slowing down,’ Hopley said.
The growth of the average player’s power and pace has been seen to accelerate this worrying trend. The average weight of the England team in 1994 — a year before the advent of professionalism — was 92.3kg. The England team that took on Ireland last Saturday averaged 105.1kg. Unfortunately resistance to head injuries is not able to keep pace, with concussion rates showing a clear year-on-year rise from 3.1 per 1,000 playing hours in 2005-06 to 6.7 per 1,000 hours in 2012-13. [/one_half]
