Daly and Hughes doubtful for the start of Six Nations
Wasps players to have injuries assessed today Tuilagi could also miss out after being cited
Elliot Daly and Nathan Hughes are serious doubts for the start of England’s Six Nations campaign, while Manu Tuilagi’s hope of appearing in the championship for the first time since 2016 are also in jeopardy.
Tuilagi, who made his first start since September at the weekend, was cited yesterday for making a dangerous tackle in the Champions Cup defeat by Munster.
The 26-year-old will appear before an independent disciplinary hearing today and could face a minimum suspension of six weeks if he is found guilty of making a dangerous tackle to the head of Munster flanker Chris Cloete, following World Rugby’s crackdown on high tackles in January.
The citing prompted a withering response from his former British and Irish Lions team-mate Brian O’driscoll. “I think the game has gone soft if we’re picking up on marginal collisions like the Manu Tuilagi tackle he’s been cited for,” O’driscoll said.
Daly and Hughes will also discover today whether they will play any part in the Six Nations as they both see specialists after suffering ankle and knee injuries respectively in the victory over La Rochelle. Ben Te’o, the Worcester centre, is also expected to miss the start of the Six Nations because of the ankle problem that has sidelined him since October.
Dai Young, the Wasps director of rugby, expects his players to be sidelined for a minimum of four weeks but fears it could be as long as 12, which would effectively end their hopes of playing in the championship. England open their campaign against Italy on Feb 4.
Jimmy Gopperth, the Wasps flyhalf, has also sustained a knee injury similar to Hughes and must also see a specialist today. “The MRI scans have come back and it does not look particularly good news,” said Young.
The loss of Hughes for the start of the Six Nations would be a major blow to England, given that Billy Vunipola has been out for four months with a knee injury.
Mark Mccall, the Saracens director of rugby, indicated yesterday that he expected to have Vunipola and Maro Itoje fit again by the time of their next Champions Cup assignment against the Ospreys on the weekend of Jan 12-14.
Itoje said he hoped to be back within a couple of weeks from the double fracture to his jaw that he sustained against Harlequins.
“It was probably my most painful injury so far,” Itoje said. “My jaw ballooned, and I turned into a black Buzz Lightyear!”