Launchbury to miss All Blacks showdown
Lock Joe Launchbury will miss England’s rugby test against the All Blacks at Twickenham next month after knee surgery has ruled him out for up to 12 weeks. His Wasps club made a brief announcement on Twitter without elaborating. Launchbury hasn’t played since injuring his knee playing for Wasps on September 16 in the English Premiership. At the time, scans showed no structural damage but he had been receiving injections to ease the swelling. He became an England stalwart in the second row not long after his 2012 debut. He has forged a partnership with Maro Itoje since 2016 and Eddie Jones’ appointment as coach. Launchbury has 54 caps but will miss the tests against South Africa, New Zealand, Japan and Australia. The much-awaited test against the world No 1 All Blacks is on November 10.