Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii to have jaw surgery before Lions tour
Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii is set to be ruled out until June after suffering a fractured jaw that will require surgery, but Australia's star player is expected to be fit for the first Test against the British & Irish Lions.
Noah Lolesio, the Wallabies fly half who was carried from the field on a stretcher, escaped a major back injury and is anticipated to be back on the field when the ACT Brumbies play Crusaders on May 30.
Suaalii, 21, was concussed last weekend after colliding with the knee of his Waratahs team-mate Andrew Kellaway, and will miss the rest of the Super Rugby season, unless the Waratahs, who are eighth in the table, clinch an unlikely place in the play-offs.
Joe Schmidt will breathe a sigh
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BBC News
2 hours ago
- BBC News
Ecclestone to take break to 'prioritise wellbeing'
England spinner Sophie Ecclestone will take a break from domestic cricket as she manages a quad injury and to "prioritise her wellbeing". Ecclestone, 26, was left out of England's first squad under new coach Charlotte Edwards because she was recovering from a knee injury. She played for the UP Warriorz in India's Women's Premier League in February but was sidelined for two months and missed the beginning of Lancashire's domestic season. The left-arm spinner has since played two one-day matches and six T20s for her county, but was withdrawn from their match against Hampshire on Tuesday because of the quad problem. At this stage, Ecclestone, who is the number one-ranked ODI bowler in the world, remains available for England's white-ball series against India, which begins on 28 June at Trent Bridge. "Sophie has been managing a quad niggle over the past week but more importantly she wants to take a step back from cricket for a short period to look after herself," said Edwards. "We're totally behind that. We want to be able to select Sophie for the India series but the most important thing for her at the moment is that she feels in a better place. "We all agree that a break now could be beneficial for her to achieve that." England insisted Ecclestone's omission from the squad for the ongoing West Indies series was not related to the controversy that overshadowed an awful Ashes tour of Australia earlier this year. During England's 16-0 series defeat Ecclestone refused to take part in a TV interview conducted by former team-mate Alex Hartley, following her criticism of England's fitness during the T20 World Cup in have comfortably beaten West Indies, winning both the one-day international and T20 series, but are expected to face a much greater challenge against India, who are also hosting the 50-over World Cup at the end of September. "Mental health is so important," Hartley told BBC Test Match Special during the final ODI against West Indies at Taunton."If she [Ecclestone] feels she needs a refresh and if she's going to miss a series or a bit of domestic cricket, but it means she's fit for the World Cup, ultimately that's what we want."
BBC News
3 hours ago
- BBC News
'I'll always be rooting for you' - players' tributes to sacked Postecoglou
Tottenham's players have been paying tribute on social media to Ange Postecoglou after the Australian's sacking on Son Heung-min said: "You believed in yourself, and us, since day one and never wavered for a second. Even when others did."You knew what we were capable of all along. You did it your way. And your way brought this club the best night it's had in decades. We will have those memories for life."Ange Postecoglou, you are a Tottenham Hotspur legend forever. Thank you, mate."Pedro Porro wrote: "Thank you for everything, boss. I'll always be grateful for the way you led us, defended us, and kept us going through all the highs and lows."Above everything, you gave us one of the greatest moments in the club's history and for that, you'll always be celebrated."Fellow defender Micky van de Ven added: "Gaffer, thank you for everything. "Believed in me from the first day I arrived at the club. Many ups and downs in the past two years but you kept believing in us and kept pushing us. "Forever grateful that you made me part of it."Striker Dominic Solanke said: "Thank you for bringing me to this wonderful club, thank you for bringing us a wonderful trophy."Won't ever forget the convo we had before I signed and we achieved a dream. All the best in your next adventure."Forward Richarlison added: "Everyone who loves Spurs will remember that Big Ange always bags trophies in his second season. We've made history! Cheers and good luck on your journey! I'll always be rooting for you."And goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario wrote: "From that very first call, right from the beginning, you always showed so much belief in me."Giving me the opportunity to be part of the leadership group... those moments, and many others, will stay with me forever."You are not only a top manager, you are an incredible person to work for - a real leader, a mentor, and someone I'll always look up to."What we achieved TOGETHER will stay in the history books."
Reuters
3 hours ago
- Reuters
Reigning champions Blues stay alive with last-gasp win over Chiefs
SYDNEY, June 7 (Reuters) - Josh Beehre scored a converted try after the hooter as the Auckland Blues kept alive their Super Rugby Pacific title defence with a 20-19 victory over the Waikato Chiefs in Hamilton on Saturday to scrape into the playoff semi-finals. The Chiefs will join the Blues and the Canterbury Crusaders in the last four under the "lucky losers" rule, with the last contender to be decided when the ACT Brumbies and Wellington Hurricanes meet in Canberra later on Saturday. A try from centre Daniel Rona and 14 points from the boot of Damian McKenzie looked to have earned the Chiefs the win but the Blues pounded away at the line in a frantic finish before lock Beehre reached over to score and Beauden Barrett converted. "There's been a whole lot of ups and downs through our season, and... although there's another week for us, we've got to enjoy that kind of moment," said Blues skipper Patrick Tuipulotu. "I'm glad we were able to sort of grind it out in that last 10 minutes." The match at Waikato Stadium was dominated by a titanic forward battle complemented by a dazzling duel between All Blacks playmakers McKenzie and Barrett. Three penalties from McKenzie to one from Barrett gave the Chiefs a 9-3 lead at halftime after both sides bombed what looked like certain tries. Chiefs centre Daniel Rona burst down the left wing in the 27th minute and while his kick infield looked to have given Cortez Ratima a try on a plate, the scrumhalf knocked on with the line at his mercy. McKenzie gave the Chiefs a 6-3 lead with his second penalty four minutes later and hit the turf soon afterwards after being tripped by Ricky Riccitelli while chasing a Shaun Stevenson chip through. That earned the hooker 10 minutes in the sin bin and McKenzie added his third three-pointer from the resultant penalty but Barrett was not done with his contribution to the first half. The twice World Player of the year chipped the ball over the home defensive line at midfield, got to it first and volleyed it past the last defenders but was unable to get his hands on it under the posts. Barrett cut the deficit with his second penalty soon after the break but McKenzie responded in kind three minutes later and the Chiefs were 19-6 ahead just before the hour mark. The home side laid siege to the Blues try line and a superbly judged pass from McKenzie sent Rona through a gap in the defensive line for the first try of the game. Caleb Clarke got across the try line for the Blues minutes later only to have the ball knocked out of his grasp but forward Kurt Eklund was able to force his way over for a converted try that cut the deficit to 19-13 with 15 minutes to play. Blues number eight Hoskins Sotutu was denied what would have been a winning try when he was called back for crawling and it was left to Beehre to secure the victory. "I thought we had that game in the bag," said Chiefs lock Tupou Vaa'i. "I guess footy's a strange game sometimes and you can start on a high and then it can humble you real quick. "I guess we've still got a life now, and our season's not over yet."
