Wales in a bind because of injuries to Dan Lydiate and James Hook – Rugby News
Wales national Rugby Union team’s 2011 Rugby World Cup (RWC) campaign suffered a major setback following injuries to several members of the first string squad, including the pair of James Dan Lydiate and James Hook.
Lydiate sustained an ankle ligament injury during Wales’ 2011 RWC win over Samoa as Wales defeated Samoa 17 – 10 on Sunday, September 18 at Waikato Stadium, Hamilton. Team officials have confirmed that it is very unlikely that he will play in the group matches.
Wales’ assistant coach, Robin McBryde, provided the updates on injuries on Wednesday, September 21. Commenting on Lydiate’s injury, he said, “The medical team are working around the clock, and Dan is getting up every two hours, icing his foot”
McBryde added that Lydiate is an important part of the squad and his presence in the back row forwards adds quality to the forwards pack. He added that Lydiate’s injury status will be reassessed after their Namibian encounter on Monday, September 26, at New Plymouth.
Wales' full back James Hook, who sustained an injury to his shoulder in last week's encounter against Samoa, is yet to attain full fitness. The final decision regarding his selection for their Namibian encounter will be taken later this week.
Additionally, Wales has expressed confidence that their back row forwards’ player, Ryan Jones, will participate in the full training session on Thursday, September 22. Jones will make a comeback after recovering from a calf injury.
McBryde added that they will not make any hasty announcements regarding summoning a replacement for the injured players. He said, “We are just going to use as much time as we've got to find out a little bit more about Dan and James to give them as much time as possible.”
McBryde hinted Alun-Wyn Jones in a role in the back row forwards’ pack in case Lydiate and Jones fail to recover in time. He further added that Wales will make the replacement calls after assessing the situation following their upcoming Namibian encounter.
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