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England's notorious training camp claims a sixth player, Josh McNally
By Ian Cameron
Bath lock Josh McNally has become the sixth player injured in England's notoriously brutal training environment, following hot on the heels of Worcester's Ted Hill.
NcNally earned his first international cap against the US Eagles last weekend but suffered a shoulder injury in training which has ruled him out of contention for this weekend’s game against Canada.
As with Hill, the 31-year-old will remain with England for rest of the summer series with further assessment needed to discover the full extent of the injury.
“We are extremely proud of Josh’s journey and the challenges he has had to overcome to achieve international recognition,” Bath Director of Rugby Stuart Hooper said. “His professionalism and leadership during his time at Bath has been exemplary and we are confident these attributes will aid his rehabilitation back to the field.
“We will support Josh throughout his recovery to ensure a safe and strong return.”
Fellow back five forward Hill suffered an ankle injury and will also be kept in camp for further assessment. Hill and McNally are the fifth and sixth injuries to befall England's current camp in the last four weeks alone. Sean Robinson, Miles Reid, Fraser Dingwall and Sam Underhill all picked injuries in camp, although Underhill did go on to play a part in England’s victory over the US Eagles last weekend.
"Unfortunately, they are just part of the game. I don’t think it is new in the game at all," said defence coach John Mitchell when asked about the spate of injuries two weeks ago. “You have had other teams, including the Lions, that have lost players in their preparation. The demands of this level of rugby require you to train and stress the players at a level that is equivalent to the game or above the game. It’s part and parcel of the preparation."
A late bloomer, McNally moved to Bath after two seasons with London Irish and became one of England's oldest debut cap ever when he won his first cap at the age of 31.
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Latest Comments
Deep down, Taniela would love to still be at the Reds and who can blame him?
Go to commentsI actually think Ulster are showing a few green shoots this year. The fact that they ahve the second biggest Provincial population of 2.3 million is misleading. Half the population are unlikely to play due to background. The other half have seen a fall off in private school attendance preferring to school in GB esp Scotland and lost to the system. That will reverse in time.
The solution to the thorny issue of participation based on political background can be solved by breaking Rugby as a truly mainstream sport in the rest of Ireland and thus a sport for all no matter what background.
The QF defeat to NZ in 2023 was a devastating blow to that potential but the IRFU must truly put a lot of resources into this via coaching in ‘regular’ schools and pathways though AIL league etc.
The URC standings of Irish provinces needs a little mitigation. Each club in URC plays their home clubs twice. As Leinster have decided the best strategy to win the URC and challenge in Champions Cup is to decisively have the league phase in the bag so resources can be spared later and home matches in all KOs assured. That means Munster, Ulster and Connaught will score a combined total of zero points against Leinster. Compare that to Welsh teams who will score a combined total of 30 points against Dragons.
There is no weak Irish team so no easy points on offer. The standard has dipped a little but Connaught are good as their European campaign shows and all three will improve next year including Ulster.
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