England fans question whether Vunipola was rushed back too soon

All England rugby fans have breathed a collective sigh of relief after it was revealed that Mako Vunipola will only be out for 10 days after injuring his hamstring again against Ireland last weekend. 

The loosehead prop will miss the final warm-up game against Italy on September 6, but many would have feared his World Cup was potentially over when he limped off the Twickenham turf on Saturday. 

That was his first outing since tearing his hamstring in the Champions Cup final in May with Saracens. The injury required surgery and he suffered another slight tear to the scar tissue in the 57-15 demolition of Ireland. 

While it was important that Vunipola got some game time ahead of the World Cup, some fans on social media feel that he was rushed back and that it was not necessary for him to play in a warm-up match. 

Of course, Eddie Jones would not have wanted Vunipola to go into the World Cup with no game time under his belt, but it has come at a price. 

Mixed bag for England concerning Jack Nowell and Mako Vunipola https://t.co/Nv50UIRVzR

— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) August 28, 2019

The loosehead is arguably the best in the world in his position and the impact he has on the England team is noticeable. Jones knows what he gets from the 28-year-old and therefore some fans feel it is worth biding his time to play the prop at the finals.

England’s opening two games of the World Cup are against Tonga and the USA, two games that Vunipola can afford to miss, meaning he has longer to recover. However, the priority is that he returns for the matches against Argentina and France in the pool stages. This has been the reaction: 

https://twitter.com/mamameagz/status/1166683306320158720?s=20

Playing in a game he didn’t need to play in

— David St ? (@davidandmeli) August 28, 2019

Keep him doing rehab work until the USA game and then use him for last 20 mins. Make sure he’s alright for Argentina and France

— Edward Hopper (@EHopper93) August 28, 2019

Can you stop talking about player welfare when you rush people back from injury to play in a match that he didn’t need to be involved in?

— David St ? (@davidandmeli) August 28, 2019

Hopefully we can rest him until the Argentina game

— Cllr John Potter ???????????? (@johnpotterLD) August 28, 2019

This must have been a tough decision for Jones to make, as while he would have wanted Vunipola to be 100 per cent fit when he made his return, it takes a while to regain full fitness with hamstring injuries. 

Therefore, it would have been a gamble to leave it to the World Cup to see if Vunipola was ready. Fortunately, this most recent injury has not proven to be too costly. 

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