Buckled Rush a blow for Blues
Fri, 25 Jul 2008 12:38
The Cardiff Blues have been dealt an untimely blow, with Kiwi No.8 Xavier Rush injuring his knee in training and looking to be sidelined for up to 12 weeks.
Rush, tore the cartilage off the back of his knee cap which will be resected when Rush goes into hospital on Wednesday, 30 July.
He is expected to be out for two to three months.
"I injured the knee in training however we won't know the full extent of the injury until I see the surgeon on Tuesday," Rush told cardiffblues.com.
"It's likely that I will need an operation to fix the problem which would put me out for up to 12 weeks which would be disappointing," he added.
Rush's prognosis would thus rule him out of the Blues' first two Heineken Cup games against Calvisano and Gloucester, all three of the EDF Cup group games and the Welsh derby at the Ospreys.
Coach Dai Young must now plan for the new campaign without his skipper after the eight-capped former All Black will only be available again at the end of October.
Young does have options, and could now look to replace the big-hitting ball carrier with utility back-rowers Mark Lewis and Andy Powell.
Rush led by example last season as the Blues progressed to the Heineken Cup quarterfinals as well as finishing second in the Magners League - Rush's loss will therefore come as a big setback as the region looks to build on that progress.
The robust No.8 joined the Blues from the Auckland Blues in 2005, and was made captain a year later. Rush committed to his favoured Welsh setup earlier this year, having signed a new three-year deal with the region in January.
