Queensland Reds star flanker Liam Gill has been ruled out for the first month of the Super Rugby season.
Gill, who was already recovering from a shoulder issue, suffered a stress fracture to his lower back which will see him miss matches against the Waratahs, Force, Rebels and Blues.
Gill forced the most turnovers in Super Rugby last year, and was the sole bright spot for the Reds in what was a dismal 2015 season. The side only narrowly avoided taking home the wooden spoon after being ravaged by injuries, and it seems their luck is refusing to change.
Kane Douglas, who was one of the Wallabies most impressive performers during their World Cup campaign, suffered a knee injury in the final against New Zealand, and is only a slight chance of playing in the Reds’ final three fixtures.
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The Reds will also be without skipper James Slipper, who is expected to miss the early stages of the season with a shoulder injury.
The injury to Gill will be felt particularly keenly by the Reds this weekend as they go up against a Waratahs side boasting the current Australian openside flanker, Michael Hooper.
The news also puts a significant dent in Gill’s hopes of representing the Wallabies. The flanker is set to move to France to continue his career at the end of the season, and his window to play for Australia will continue to shrink as he recuperates from the injury.
Gill has been replaced in Queensland’s run-on team by Curtis Browning for the matchup with the Waratahs, while young flanker Michael Gunn has been named on the bench.
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