Wallabies get surprise boost ahead of B&I Lions series
NEWS: Wallaby fans can breathe easier after Waratahs coach Dan McKellar allayed fears of Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii missing any Tests against the touring British and Irish Lions.
Despite Suaalii requiring surgery for a broken jaw, McKellar on Thursday said the injury was of a lower scale and the 21-year-old was already back in the gym working out to maintain his conditioning.
It was initially feared Suaalii might be sidelined for an extended period after copping an accidental knee from teammate Andrew Kellaway in the Waratahs’ 21-28 Super Rugby Pacific derby loss to Queensland last Friday.
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“It’s just a four-week injury,” McKellar said on the eve of the eighth-placed Tahs’ latest “must-win” clash with the Crusaders in Sydney.
“So he can crack on. Get done what he needs to get done and he’ll be back training pretty quickly.
“To be honest, it’s nothing major. It’s just a setback, obviously disappointing from a Waratahs perspective, but all going well – and most of the time it does – he’s not going to be missing any Test matches.
“So, yeah, it’s disappointing for Joseph to miss a few games for us at the back end of the year but, in terms of what’s ahead, everyone can take a deep breath and relax a bit.”
Australia’s first Test against the Lions is in Brisbane on July 19, giving the code-hopping game-breaker nine weeks to recover and return to peak fitness for the blockbuster series.
After going home with his parents in a “groggy” state last Friday, Suaalii only learnt on Monday following X-rays he had suffered a fracture.
“His jaw presented OK [initially] but obviously with a little bit of discomfort over the coming days,” McKellar said.
“More investigation was done and our medical staff got onto it and we are where we are.
“He’s in the gym right now, so he’s doing what he needs to get done. Like, he’s talking and doing everything normally so he’s good as gold.
“We play a sport that is collision-based and incredibly physical and, yeah, he got a whack, a little bit of friendly fire and will miss a couple of games.”
McKellar revealed Suaalii’s parents had reached out to Reds centre Filipo Daugunu for so sportingly rushing to his rival’s support and alerting the Queensland medical team after the incident at the Sydney Football Stadium.
Suaalii was treated for several minutes before being taken from the field on a medicab and in a neck brace.
“Enormous respect and gratitude towards Filipo Daugunu there,” McKellar said.
“I spoke to Joseph’s parents on Saturday and they were keen to get in touch with him and it just says a lot about him.
“We go hammer and tong [as fierce interstate rivals] and it’s a physical contest for 80 minutes, and certainly it was physical on Friday, but at the end of the day we’re all human beings and no one wants to see anyone injured.
“And the boys certainly appreciate that and no one more so than Joseph and his family.”
With Suaalii out, Kellaway – ironically – will replace the injured superstar at fullback with one-time Wallaby Darby Lancaster to start on the wing as the Waratahs look to stay in the finals race.
The Tahs are four points outside the top six with three games remaining and likely need to beat the Crusaders in their last home game of the season, then Western Force and Blues away to feature in the play-offs.
