Luke Jacobson set for another stint on the sidelines

Chiefs loose forward Luke Jacobson, who was sent home last year’s Rugby World Cup in Japan due to concussion, has been ruled out for the remainder of the Super Rugby Aotearoa season.

The 22-year-old fractured a hand during the Chiefs’ loss to the Blues over the weekend and while the recovery time for the injury is 5 to 6 weeks, the Chiefs are taking a cautious approach and don’t expect to get any more minute out of the young flanker this season.

Jacobson has suffered through an injury-ridden career with concussions regularly causing problems for the young Waikato man.

New coach Dave Rennie has his sights set on a Wallabies revival.

New coach Dave Rennie has his sights set on a Wallabies revival.

After making his Chiefs debut in 2018, Jacobson took a knock to the head in the final round of the competition and missed the entire Mitre 10 Cup. Last year, concussion limited his appearances for the Chiefs but the promising loose forward was still selected in the New Zealand national squad for the first time.

Jacobson was initially selected to travel to Japan – despite having played less than a half of rugby for the All Blacks – but was pulled from the competition before he could take the field. He made two appearances for Waikato last year prior to the World Cup but, after returning home, focussed on fully recovering from his concussion symptoms.

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Jacobson then injured his hamstring during the 2020 pre-season and managed just 20 minutes against the Brumbies before re-aggravating the injury, which kept him off the park until the Super Rugby Aotearoa competition kicked off following the shutdown due to COVID-19.

Super Rugby Aotearoa still has eight weeks to run (although the Chiefs have a bye in the final week of the competition) then the provincial season is due to kick off three weeks later. Jacobson will likely be targeting a return to action with Waikato – though there’s a chance the 22-year-old could be selected for one of the composite sides that are expected to form during the two-week break.