Siya Kolisi’s fitness ahead of the 2023 Rugby World Cup could be in jeopardy after he injured his knee during the United Rugby Championship clash with Munster over the weekend.
Sharks flanker Kolisi suffered an apparent partial tear to his anterior cruciate ligaments (ACL) and apparently injured his meniscus on both sides of the injured knee.
The 2019 World Cup-winning captain has reportedly met with two specialists who recommend knee surgery, which could rule him out of action for up to nine months, meaning he would miss the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France.
Avoiding surgery on the injured meniscus would likely still put him out of action for four months, which is still a concern for the tournament.
“Pool of death” – England and Wales handed nightmare groups in revised Rugby World Cup draw
The latest World Rugby Rankings reaffirm home how ridiculous the Pool Draw for the Rugby World Cup 2023 is.
Decided THREE years before the tournament, the pools for the tournament that starts in September seems extremely unbalanced.
World Rugby has already confirmed they will hold the pool draws for future Rugby World Cups at a later date, closer to the kick-off of upcoming tournaments.
This comes after criticism that the draws were taking place far too early, with world rankings at the time of the draw playing a crucial role in the teams’ seedings.
World Rugby will shake the pool draw up ahead of 2027, according to a report by the Mirror.
“World Rugby said it is able to make the change because of a new ‘hosting model’ that sees the international federation create collaborations with the host union,” the report read.
“The top of the men’s Test game has never been more competitive,” the spokesperson added. “There has never been so much movement over a two-year period.
“Bearing that in mind and noting the format of four pools of five teams, there is arguably no perfect time for a draw.”
As a result, the guys over at Eggchasers Rugby put together their own drawer the 2023 tournament based on the current World Rugby rankings.
Concentrating on only the top 10 countries in the world, it looks significant.
It was very different with England and Wales handed a much sterner test in their pool. Watch the full video here.
POOL A actual draw:
- France
- New Zealand
POOL A up to date draw
- France
- Australia