0
Fullback injuries create headaches
Sunday, April 22, 2007
Wallabies coach John Connolly has admitted Australia are running out of time to settle on a reliable fullback before the rugby World Cup.
A concerned Connolly is anxiously waiting on the injury fate of front-running candidate Cameron Shepherd, which won't be known until tomorrow.
Shepherd has undergone scans in Perth this afternoon after suffering a knee injury in the Western Force's 14-12 Super 14 loss to the Brumbies on Friday night.
There are fears the in-form winger-fullback could be ruled out for the rest of the season, leaving a major hole at No. 15 leading into the Tri Nations and World Cup, kicking off in France in September.
Shepherd was seen as the primary back-up to injured incumbent Chris Latham, who will not return from his own knee reconstruction before the latter stages of the Tri Nations in July.
Force fullback Drew Mitchell now looms as the man most likely to start the domestic Test season for the May 26 clash against Wales in Sydney.
Australia play another Test against Wales and also Fiji before the stakes and intensity rise significantly in the Tri Nations on June 16 in South Africa.
"Time is running out there's no doubt about that," Connolly said about the search for Latham's replacement.
After a horror start in the position for the Force, speedster Mitchell has improved but still lacks a steady boot and is viewed as a more natural winger.
Brumbies utility Julian Huxley is also in a small frame for a Test debut, unlike Queensland league convert Clinton Schifcofske and mercurial Waratah Peter Hewat.
Connolly could try to use the three domestic Tests to experiment with wingers Lote Tuqiri or Mark Gerrard at fullback but isn't sold on the risky move of adapting them.
"It's very hard, those things you wouldn't rule out but it's not the desirable way to go," he said.
Connolly will check on Latham's progress this week but Australia's most dangerous attacking weapon remains no certainty to return to full fitness or his match-winning form before the World Cup.
Former Test fullback Matt Burke remains an option for the tournament despite rejecting an offer to return from England to play in the domestic Tests and Tri Nations.
The Wallabies selectors will name a 30-man squad for the Wales and Fiji Tests on May 20 and will also choose a squad for the five-match Australia A campaign which starts the following month.
Shepherd, a try-scoring and goal-kicking star for the Force this season, is crossing his fingers that scans will show just low-grade ligament damage and he will be all right for the May 26 Test.
"The best case scenario is a small operation and he will be right in a couple of weeks but I can't even speculate at the moment," Connolly said.
AAP