La Rochelle's Raymond Rhule ruled out until 2025 – report

Raymond Rhule’s rotten run with injury has continued, with his latest setback set to sideline him until 2025. The 31-year-old South African has been a key player in the evolution of La Rochelle with Ronan O’Gara at the helm and he was a left wing starter in their 2022 and 2003 Champions Cup final wins over Leinster.

However, a series of injuries limited him to just two appearances in the 2023/24 season and he is now poised not to play again until 2025 following an achilles injury at a club training camp in La Plagne.

La Rochelle are reportedly likely to go into the market to recruit a medical joker ahead of their new Top 14 campaign which begins on September 8 at home to Toulon.

A report on sudouest.fr read: “Usually so cheerful, Raymond Rhule is once again the victim of terrible bad luck. As indicated by the Rugby Prime website on August 18, the Maritime three-quarter injured his achilles tendon during the La Rochelle training camp in La Plagne.

“This happened during the first training session in the Alps and should, according to our information, result in an absence of four to five months for the South African. The blow is all the harder as he had already suffered several injuries last season and had only played two matches, in Perpignan in February and in Castres in April.

“La Rochelle, who are banking on a reduced number of professional contracts, will therefore continue to bet on its training but is not closing the door to a medical joker.”