England dealt huge double Rugby World Cup blow with injury setbacks

24 August 2023 , 13:37

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Anthony Watson has been ruled out of the World Cup with a calf injury (Image: Dan Mullan - RFU/The RFU Collection via Getty Images)

England's Rugby World Cup preparations have suffered another major setback after it emerged that both Elliot Daly and Anthony Watson are to miss the tournament.

England are already set to be without both captain Owen Farrell and Billy Vunipola for the start of the World Cup after they were banned for high tackles. Farrell will miss England's first two games against Argentina and Japan after World Rugby successfully appealed to have his red card for a high tackle against Wales reinstated.

Vunipola, meanwhile, will not be available for the Argentina match after he was sent off for a high tackle against Ireland. His ban is particularly problematic for England boss Steve Borthwick as Vunipola is the only specialist No 8 in his World Cup squad.

And Borthwick now has more problems to deal with after England announced that Watson has been ruled out of the tournament altogether with a calf injury, while reports have also claimed that Daly will miss the World Cup as well.

Watson looks set to be replaced in the squad by Jonny May, who is starting England's final warm-up game against Fiji at Twickenham this weekend. The Daily Mail, meanwhile, report that Daly has suffered an unspecified injury which will also see him ruled out of the tournament.

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The report adds that Joe Cokanisaga is set to replace him, with the news coming just weeks after it was announced that scrum-half Jack van Poortvliet will miss the World Cup due to an ankle injury sustained against Wales. The injury requires surgery and Alex Mitchell has replaced him in the squad.

"I'm absolutely devastated not to be going," Van Poortvliet told BBC Radio Leicester. "It's been a hard couple of days. When I knew I wasn't going, I wanted to get home to family as quickly as possible.

Reports have also claimed Elliot Daly is set to miss the World Cup with an injury

"To be able to come back and have a big picture realisation has helped me a lot. At the time I thought it was the end of the world, but there's a lot more to life. I know I can use this opportunity to come back a lot stronger and better, and come back a lot more rounded person than I was before.

"Obviously I'm absolutely gutted as I had dreamed about playing in the World Cup my whole life. To have that taken away at this moment was really hard. I was incredibly humbled and really appreciated all the support I got. It meant a lot."

There also remain doubts over the fitness of flanker Tom Curry, who has not featured in a single warm-up game due to an ankle issue and has not made the squad for the Fiji clash.

Matthew Cooper