England is already set to be up against it heading into the 2025 Six Nations – and now, they could be set for even more issues, with experienced hooker Jamie George picking up a hamstring injury over the weekend.
For George, it has already been a tough week – having been replaced as England captain by Maro Itoje for the upcoming campaign – but things took a turn for the worst when the 97-capped England hooker limped from the field in Sarcens’ 32-24 defeat to Castres in the Champions Cup on Sunday.
“Jamie has hurt his hamstring,” Saracens director of rugby Mark McCall said.
“We’re not quite sure how serious it is at the moment.”
Steve Borthwick, Head coach of England, and Jamie George. (Photo by David Ramos – RFU/The RFU Collection via Getty Images )
While the extent of the injury is undetermined – any sort of hamstring injury this close to the start of the Six Nations will mean George will miss at least a portion of the competition, which is far from good news for Steve Borthwick – given his squad is set to meet next week for a warm-weather camp in Spain.
In addition to losing winger Immanuel Feyi‑Waboso, flanker Sam Underhill and full-back George Furbank to injury, he has also lost British & Irish Lions winger Antony Watson, who, despite not being picked for the initial squad, loomed as a potential inclusion as injuries have continued to pile up.
Watson is set to retire from the sport on medical grounds, earning 56 caps for England and taking part in the 2017 and 2021 Lions tours. He has battled Achilles and back issues for the last few years playing for both England and Leicester Tigers – and missed the 2023 World Cup due to a calf injury.
“My overarching feeling is of pride. I’m proud and blessed to have done what I did through my career; to have represented my family, my country and two of the biggest clubs in the country,” Watson said.
“When I started out, I wanted to make my dad more than anyone proud, I wanted to play for England and the Lions with my parents in the crowd and, eventually, wanted to share a moment with my children on the field. I can say I’ve done all those things.”
England are set to kick off their Six Nations campaign against Ireland in Dublin on February 1st.
She has lit up the Premiership Women’s competition since signing for Bristol Bears, but Ilona Maher is now set for a stint on the sideline after picking up a broken nose.
Maher featured off the bench in the Bears’ 43-29 win over the Leicester Tigers at Ashton Gate – with the star revealing her injury to her followers on social media in the hours after the match.
Fortunately, she followed up a few hours later, revealing that she is currently recuperating.
The US Olympian has enjoyed strong form since transitioning over to the fifteen-a-side format of the game with the Bears, breaking crowd records in her three performances, and scoring her maiden Premiership try in the Bears’ victory over Exeter Chiefs last week.
Currently, the Bears sit just three points outside finals contention with four matches remaining in the regular season.
As part of Super Rugby Pacific’s forthcoming ANZAC Round, the Chiefs are set to head on the road to host their first match in Tauranga since 2013.
The Waikato side’s Round 11 clash against the Western Force was without a venue when the schedule dropped, however last week it was confirmed that Bay Oval in Mount Maunganui is set to host its maiden Super Rugby clash to kick off the round.
A regarded international-grade cricket oval that recently hosted a match as part of the T20 series between the Black Caps and Sri Lanka, the 15,000-capacity venue loomed as the best night-game option for a region starved of Super Rugby matches, according to Kelvin Jones, the Bay Oval Trust general manager.
“Really, as a night game, the Bay Oval was in a way the only option in that sense because we have lights. There’s no other venue capable of fitting that bill,” he said, speaking to The New Zealand Herald.
The Chiefs have been long due to play a regional match, with Tauranga, the second-largest city in their catchment area after Hamilton, having not hosted a Super Rugby match in 12 years.
“We are always conscious of trying to take games to our regional communities and aim to do so each season,” said Simon Graafhuis, the club’s chief executive.
“We explored multiple locations around our regions that met our operational requirements and ensured we spread our presence across our six provincial regions from season to season.”
However, while the match has been welcomed by local fans, questions have also been raised as to the lack of a rectangular venue to host matches in the city.
The Chiefs will be looking to go one step further this season, making it to the 2024 Grand Final before losing to the Blues at Eden Park.
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