Eddie gets his Manu hole cover
BEN TE’O has given England a lift by coming through an injury scare and declaring himself fit for an immediate return to action with Worcester.
It was feared the Lions centre may need an operation after the arm in which he had previously had a metal plate inserted was damaged against Newcastle last Friday. He lasted less than 20 minutes of the Warriors’ opening Premiership game.
But Te’o has made a rapid recovery and has been cleared to face Wasps at Sixways on Sunday.
“He got a knock on the arm and he said he lost a bit of feeling but it must have hit a nerve or something because he’s fine. He’ll be OK for this weekend,” said Worcester director of rugby Gary Gold.
The positive bulletin on his super-sub will come as a relief to Eddie Jones, who has already lost one midfield enforcer, Manu Tuilagi, for the autumn internationals.
Leicester confirmed a 12-week lay-off for the injury-plagued centre who underwent a knee operation yesterday.
Te’o showed last season he could fulfil the same blockbusting role for England with his impact from the bench earning him a Lions starting spot for the first Test in Auckland.
His availability is also a fillip to a Worcester side who have endured a disconcerting week. First came the heavy defeat in the North-east, which dovetailed uneasily with a flying start for likely relegation rivals London Irish, then a public appeal for more funding from the club’s owners who anticipate a £4million loss this year.
Throw in the abrupt departure of former Saracens chief executive Ed Griffiths, who had been advising the Warriors on their future strategy, and Sixways looks a little unstable.
Gold insists the squad remain focused regardless. “It doesn’t affect us,” he said. “If it was a situation like Wasps found themselves in a couple of years ago that would be a different story but it’s not the case.
“At no stage are the owners saying they are going to put the club into liquidation; they are looking for additional investment.
“That’s all it is. We are not in trouble. The owners won’t walk away.”
Holding firm may well be the order of the day over the next month with the fixture computer doing the Warriors no favours. Gold’s men face a nightmare THE RFU are aiming to double the amount of women playing rugby in the next three years on the back of their relaunched 15s league and the recent successful World Cup.
Director of professional rugby Nigel Melville wants 50,000 women playing by 2020 and believes the new 10-team Tyrrells Premiers 15s tournament, which starts tomorrow week, will help push up the numbers.
SPORT IN BRIEF
run against last season’s top three – Wasps, Exeter and Saracens – with the light relief in the middle a visit to Kingsholm to face a rejuvenated Gloucester.
“It’s coming thick and fast in these next few weeks but I suppose we have to play these teams at some point,” said Gold.
“We need to get back to winning ways as soon as possible. It’s not going to be that easy with the way the fixture list is but picking up a couple of wins will give us a huge amount of confidence.
“Last week we played well enough for 40 minutes but for the other 40 minutes we were shocking. We were the masters of our own downfall and I wonder if that hasn’t been the problem for a long time. It goes back to not handing chances to the opposition.
“We want to play well at home and what better way to try to rectify the Newcastle result than by putting in a good performance against Wasps?”
Gold’s reputation is as a survival specialist having hauled Worcester out of trouble last season to preserve their Premiership status. He accepts the pragmatic approach which enabled the Warriors to stay up has to evolve this season – and promises it will.
“Rugby has become a more exciting sport and you don’t want to be left behind,” said Gold.