Dupont set for on-field return
INJURY UPDATE: French giants Toulouse could soon be boosted by the return of superstar Antoine Dupont after a lengthy injury lay-off.
Dupont is set to return for Toulouse this weekend after more than eight months out injured, a source told AFP on Thursday.
Scrumhalf Dupont suffered a serious knee injury in March but is expected to be in the French champions’ matchday squad for Saturday’s home Top 14 game against Racing 92.
Since October, the 29-year-old Olympic gold medallist has been training with Toulouse, record 24-time French champions, but he missed France’s Nations Series campaign.
Without Dupont, Les Bleus lost to South Africa before beating Fiji and Australia, despite the No.9 training with the team during the first few days of the Test season.
Earlier this month, former Castres playmaker Dupont signed a new contract with Toulouse, keeping him at the six-time Champions Cup winners until 2031.
He made the dramatic announcement on the Stade Ernest-Wallon pitch during half-time of their win over Stade Francais on November 1.
“I miss you a lot,” Dupont said. “I hope the next time we see each other, I’ll have boots on my feet.”
In October 2024, Dupont made another Toulouse return, having won a gold medal in Rugby Sevens at the Paris Olympics, and scored a hat-trick in nine minutes against Clermont.
Toulouse lead the Top 14 table after 10 rounds before hosting Racing 92 with the start of the Champions Cup next weekend against the Sharks.
“The whole planet tries to defend against him and doesn’t succeed,” Racing head coach Patrice Collazo told reporters on Wednesday.
“He is a type of player that is the best at what he does,” the former France prop added.
As Dupont returns, however, the French champions suffered a new injury blow when their Argentine back Juan Cruz Mallia announced on social media on Thursday evening that his “season is over”.
“I am full of energy and surrounded by great people to help me face this new challenge,” wrote the versatile 29-year-old who can play at flyhalf, fullback, wing and even centre.
Mallia, who has 52 caps, hobbled off the field on Sunday after being tackled late by England flanker Tom Curry in the 75th minute of the Pumas’ defeat at Twickenham.
The Argentine team initially announced that Mallia was suffering from a “post-traumatic injury to the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee”.
Mallia did not reveal the exact nature of his injury, but a local French publication reported on Wednesday that he had suffered a cruciate ligament rupture.
