Tuesday Round-Up

Life without Manu: England head coach Stuart Lancaster is being forced to deal with yet another injury blow today, as news emerges that Leicester Tigers midfield man Manu Tuilagi has been ruled out of the opening rounds of Six Nations action at the every least. Tuilagi, who has struggled with a multitude of injuries over the past six to twelve months, is currently sidelined with a troublesome groin injury, which also ruled him out of the entirety of the November International series. In the initial instances, Tuilagi was expected to be out of the game for six to eight weeks, a timeframe which would have seen a return to the field pre Christmas. However, with his recovery taking substantially longer than expected, Tuilagi has now undergone three prolotherapy injections, essentially sugar, in order to attempt to reconnect the pubis. According to reports emerging today, Tuilagi’s return is scheduled for the end of February, which would leave Lancaster without his star centre for the opening three rounds of action, including the Championship opener against old rivals Wales at the Millennium Stadium. In Tuilagi’s absence, its likely that the trio of luther Burrell, Kyle Eastmond and Billy Twelvetrees will fight it out for the midfield spots, with Sam Burgess as a wildcard.

Giteau worry: Toulon head coach Bernard Laporte is having to deal with fresh concerns surrounding flyhalf Matt Giteau’s hamstring once again. Giteau, who had been sidelined for roughly two months earlier in the season, made his return to the game during the month of January. However, since his comeback, the former Wallaby has struggled to regain his top form and is now once more being troubled by a similar hamstring injury. 32 year old Giteau has long since been plagued by such injuries, and is now expected to sit out the coming six to eight weeks of action, a timeframe which will rule him out of Toulon’s final Champions Cup pool game next weekend, align with a whole host of domestic Top 14 clashes. Despite possessing a plethora of talent at both flyhalf and inside centre, over the course of recent years it has been the vision of Giteau which has proved the difference for the men from the South of France.

Ryan Sheady