Brodie Retallick on the injury complication that left him fearing for his World Cup spot
Brodie Retallick has revealed that he suffered nerve damage when his left shoulder popped out of its socket while playing for the All Blacks against the Springboks, an added complication to an already serious injury which made him fear for his place in the World Cup squad.
The lock, the World Rugby player of the year in 2014 and still one of the best in the game, told Radio Sport that he wasn’t sure he would be available even five days ago.
“Up until probably five or six days ago I wasn’t that hopeful,” Retallick said. “I knew that they had been thinking about taking four locks and giving me a chance to come right but I wasn’t sure. I was actually listening to the announcement on the Radio Sport app.”
But while head coach Steve Hansen said during the announcement of the 31-player squad for Japan that Retallick was included on the basis that he should be available for the All Blacks’ predicted quarter-final on October 19 or 20 – depending on whether they finish first or second in their pool – the man himself is hopeful he may return a little earlier than that.
“I’ve made a fair amount of progress over the last four or five days and if it keeps progressing then hopefully come four or five weeks’ time I should be able to play again,” he said.
Why Steve Hansen rolled the dice on Brodie Retallickhttps://t.co/yv21ReGTe9 pic.twitter.com/56QlxRoUy0
— Newstalk ZB Sport (@newstalkzbsport) August 28, 2019
“The one real thing that’s holding it up is that I did a bit of nerve damage when the shoulder dislocated. A couple of fingers were numb and a deltoid [shoulder muscle] wasn’t working that well. The shoulder itself is getting stronger but being without that function was a concern. I’m starting to get that feeling back now so hopefully it keeps progressing.”
The injury would have been a cruel way for Retallick, a key part of the All Blacks pack, to miss the tournament and it would have been a blow to the nation’s hopes of retaining the William Webb Ellis trophy.
It occurred in the 61st minute of the All Blacks 16-16 draw against the Boks in Wellington last month when replacement lock RG Snyman illegally cleaned him out of a ruck, an act that wasn’t even penalised by referee Nic Berry despite skipper Kieran Read’s protests.
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An impossible task but hoping we get at least 5 out of 15 correct… #RugbyWorldCup #Japan2019
Retallick left the field clutching his left arm in obvious pain and was taken straight to hospital. Afterwards, coach Steve Hansen was hopeful his key second-rower would be available for Japan but more recently has hinted at setbacks.
“It was worrying and obviously the body is key to what we do,” Retallick said. “First you want to make sure you do that [rehabilitation] right so it doesn’t affect you down the track. No one wants to get injured and I’ve had a bit of a run of them lately. It’s part of the game we play so you just have to accept it.
WATCH: The RugbyPass stadium guide for Oita, one of the cities hosting an All Blacks pool match at the World Cup
Comments on RugbyPass
In the 70s and 80s my club ran 5 Senior sides plus a Vets. Now it is 2 sides with an occasional 3rd team. Players have difficulty getitng to training now, not sure why and the commitment is not there. It seems to me more a problem of people applying themselves and not expecting to turn up and play whenever they want to.
5 Go to commentsROG’s contract is until 2027. The conversation about a successor to Galthie after RWC 2027 may be starting now. We can infer that Galthie’s reign stops then. He is throwing the Irish Coaching Job angle in because he is Irish. The next Irish coach MUST be Leo Cullen. As well as being the best coach available, coaching the vast majority of Irish Internationals week in week out, he has shown incredible skill at recruiting the best coaching staff for the job in hand. That was a failing in France. Cullen is a shrewd guy and if there is a need for foreign coaches underneath him he won’t hesitate. Rightly so. Ireland does need to start to bring Irish coaches through. Not just at the professional level but we need to train coaches to man new pathways for developing kids from schools/clubs up through the divisions.
6 Go to commentsNo Islam says it must rule where it stands Thus it is to be deleted from this planet Earth
18 Go to commentsThis team probably does not beat the ABs sadly Not sure if BPA will be available given his signing for Force but has to enter consideration. Very strong possibility of getting schooled by the AB props. Advantage AB. Rodda/Skelton would be a tasty locking combination - would love to see how they get on. Advantage Wallabies. Backrow a risk of getting out hustled and outmuscled by ABs. Will be interesting to see if the Blues feast on the Reds this weekend the way they did the Brumbies we are in big trouble at the breakdown. Great energy, running and defence but goalkicking/general kicking/passing quality in the halves bothers me enormously. SA may have won the World Cup for a lot of the tournament without a recognised goalkicker but Pollard in the final made a difference IMO. Injuries and retirements leave AB stocks a bit lighter but still stronger. 12 and 13 ABs shade it (Barret > Paisami, Ione = Ikitau, arguably) Interesting clash of styles on the wings - Corey Toole running around Caleb Clark and Caleb running over the top of Toole. Reece vs Koro probably the reverse. Pretty even IMO. 15s Kelleway = Love See advantage to ABs man for man, but we are not obviously getting slaughtered anywhere which makes a nice change. Think talent wise we are pretty even and if our cohesion and teamwork is better than the ABs then its just about doable.
11 Go to commentsCompletely agree. More friday night games would be a hit. RFU to make sure every club has a floodlit pitch. Club opens again Saturday to welcome touch / tag. Minis and youths on Sunday
5 Go to comments1.97m and 105Kg? Proportionately, probably skinnier than me at 1.82 and 82kilos. He won’t survive against the big guys at that weight.
55 Go to commentsThe value he brought to the crusaders as an assistant was equal to what he got out of being there. He reflected not only on the team culture but also the credit he attributed to the rugby community. Such experience shouldn’t be overlooked.
6 Go to commentsGood luck Aussie
11 Go to commentssmith at 9 / mounga 10 / laumape 12 / fainganuku 14
54 Go to commentsBar the injuries, it’s pretty much their top team …
2 Go to commentsDon’t disagree with much of this but it appears you forgot Rodda and Beale, who started at the Force on the weekend.
11 Go to commentsExcept for the injured Zach Gallagher this would be Saders best forward pack for the season. Blackadder needs to stay at 7, for all of Christies tackling he is not dominant and offers very little else. McNicholfullback is maybe a good option, Fihaki not really upto it, there was a reason Burke played there last year. Maybe Havilli to 2nd five McLeod to wing. Need a strong winger on 1 side to compliment Reece
1 Go to commentsTo me TJ is clearly the best 9 in the competition right now but he's also a proven player off the bench, there's few playmaking players who can come off the bench as calm and settled as he is, Beauden can, TJ can and I doubt any of the scrumhalves in contention can, if they want to experiment with new 9s I want him on the bench ready to step in if they crumble under the pressure. The Boks put their best front row on the bench, I'd like to see us take a similar approach, the Hurricanes have been doing similar things with players like Kirifi.
54 Go to commentsROG has better chance to win a WC if he starts training and make himself eligible as a player. He won’t make the Ireland squad but I reckon he may get close with Namibia (needs to improve his Afrikaans) or Portugal. Both sides had 1000:1 odds to win the RWC in 2023 which is an improvement on ROG’s odds of winning a RWC as a coach. Unlike Top 14 teams, national teams can’t go shopping and buy the best players - you work with the available talent pool and turn them into world beaters.
6 Go to commentsthat backline nope that backline is terrible why would you have sevu Reece when he’s not even top 5 wingers in the comp why have Blackadder when there’s better players no Scott barret isn’t an automatic the guy is more of a liability than anything why have him there when you have samipeni who’s far far better
54 Go to commentsAh, good to find you Nick. Agree with everything about Cale. So much to like about his game
55 Go to commentsNot too bad. Questions at 6, lock and HB for me. The ABs will be a lot stronger once Jordan and Roigard return. Also, work needs to be made to secure Frizzell back for next season and maybe also Mo’unga; they’re just wasting time playing in japan
54 Go to commentsOn the title, i wonder for many of those people it is a case something like a belief in working smarter, not harder?
1 Go to commentsForget Sotutu. One of those whose top level is Super Rugby. Id take a punt on Wallace Sititi Finau ahead of Glass body Blackadder.
54 Go to commentsI’m a pensioner so I've been around a bit. My opinion of SBW is he is an elite athlete and a great New Zealander and roll model. He has been to the top and knows what he's talking about. To all the negative comments regarding SBW the typical New Zealand way, cut that tall poppy down.
18 Go to comments