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Six NationsEngland

'The highs and lows of rugby' - Willis vows to come back stronger from horror injury

(Photo by PA)

England flanker Jack Willis has thanked fans for the messages of support he has received following his horror injury against Italy on Saturday.

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Willis was only on the pitch six minutes when he injured his leg when being cleared out of a ruck by Italy’s Sebastien Negri, and had to be removed from the pitch on a medical cart. The player had previously suffered a long-term injury in May 2018, and was winning just his third England cap against the Azzurri.

Yesterday, Negri posted a message on social media offering his support to Willis, writing “So sorry about what happened yesterday. Just horrible and never nice to see.”

And now Willis has posted his own message, vowing to come back from this latest setback as a better and stronger player.

‘The highs and lows of Rugby… I have loved every second of training and playing in an England shirt and it has been a dream come true to be involved in such a great group of lads and coaches,” Willis wrote.

“I’m truly gutted with the way it ended on Saturday but these things happen…

“I will give everything I can to my rehab to come back a better and stronger player.

“Thank you so much for all the messages and support I’ve received it really is appreciated.

“I will be back”

While the 24-year-old is expected to face a lengthy injury lay-off, the early suggestions are that Willis’ injury may not be as bad as initially feared, having not damaged his ACL.

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In an interview with the The Coventry Telegraph, Wasps Director of Rugby Lee Blackett said “It’s really early and I don’t want to go concrete with this but it sounds like he has done quite a few things with his knee. It’s pretty serious.

“But at this moment in time it looks like he has not done his ACL. He will spend a long time out, I should imagine.”

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Comments on RugbyPass

W
Wiseguy 22 minutes ago
Stat chat: How the Super Rugby Pacific finalists stack up

I think he is shaping up to be the main difference between the two teams. The Chiefs have a slight statistical advantage in most areas but in reality with home advantage I think the Crusaders will match up well. The main area I see the Chiefs having an advantage is in the halves. Hotham hasn’t lived up to the hype yet and Reihana is unproven. He did play well last week though.

2 Go to comments
C
Cantab 28 minutes ago
Super Rugby is booming, but is it actually helping the All Blacks?

I agree to a point. If we are to have a so called lucky loser then that team should automatically also assume bottom ranking and lose their home advantage as there needs to be a penalty for losing. Applied this year it would still have meant a Chiefs Brumbies match but it would have been played in Canberra which would have been a whole lot harder for the Chiefs to win. Personally I feel that teams 1 & 2 should go straight to the semis with a week off while teams 3 to 6 playoff for the right to progress to an away semi.

20 Go to comments
G
GP 35 minutes ago
Super Rugby is booming, but is it actually helping the All Blacks?

Noah Hotham is much younger than Finlay Christie. He is developing his game big time for the Crusaders. Scored a mercurial try in the Quarter against the Reds. Kyle Preston was one of the stars of the early rounds for the Crusaders. It will be interesting.

20 Go to comments
C
Cantab 40 minutes ago
Super Rugby is booming, but is it actually helping the All Blacks?

At this time Roigard & Ratima are the top 2 halves in the country. I would also rate Fakatava & Roe as being in the mix too. Hotham is a developing and young player whose time may yet come. Christie in my view doesn’t rate a spot ahead of the aforementioned.

20 Go to comments
G
GP 42 minutes ago
Stat chat: How the Super Rugby Pacific finalists stack up

I back Crusaders 10 Rivez Reihana big time. He has played so well since coming on in Dunedin. He has shown he has a big match temperament. Also he is playing against his old team, the Chiefs.

2 Go to comments
B
BA 50 minutes ago
Ex-Wallaby laughs off claims Bath are amongst the best in the world

Champions cup is played over an extended period with breaks inbetween this is not, people are interested in Champions cup during finals this is one final after another, all comps will change season to accommodate it,it’s only every 4 years makes it valuable ,it taps into the big thing about fan base and that’s international rugby Brits will support whatever UK team is in to an extent an ditto that for rest of the nations there is more but the biggest one is the obvious it answers that “best team” question that there is already a real hunger for and I cant think of anyone who likes rugby who isn’t going to be watching … Sent from Yahoo Mail for iPhone

27 Go to comments
W
Wiseguy 59 minutes ago
Super Rugby is booming, but is it actually helping the All Blacks?

You know we can see when you like your own posts right?

20 Go to comments
A
Andrew Nichols 1 hour ago
Super Rugby is booming, but is it actually helping the All Blacks?

The enduring hokd of FC in some pundits teans is baffling. At best he was a nediocre version of the mediocre TJ Perenara. They talk about defence as if that was his prime job. Never understood it.

20 Go to comments
A
Andrew Nichols 1 hour ago
Super Rugby is booming, but is it actually helping the All Blacks?

Ioane isnt seriously considered anymore. The experiment is at an end.

20 Go to comments
A
Andrew Nichols 1 hour ago
Super Rugby is booming, but is it actually helping the All Blacks?

ALB isnt great but hes had a far better test record than Havili.

20 Go to comments
I
IkeaBoy 1 hour ago
How Leinster bullied the Bulls at Croke Park

Richie Murphy is looking after Ulster. I have made the not unreasonable point that Ulster can only back youth now (they're skint).


Prior to the Ulster Job, Murphy looked after the Irish U20s. For three years in the 6Nations.


They played 15. Won 14 and drew 1.


Again, he's with Ulster!


Lancaster is at Connaght now. He was great at developing young talent 13 years ago. He's only better at it now with his experience. Relative to their size and resources, Lancaster at Connacht is comparable totally to everybody's favourite south African at Leinster! There is zero imbalance.


You're great craic lad, but this is far too indulgent and it's boring repeating myself.


Episode 1 of season 2 of Father Ted is called ‘Hell’. It's the one in which Ted tries to explain spacial awareness to Dougal with plastic, toy cows.


These ones are “small! These ones are far away”!


Well worth your time. Give it a watch.

277 Go to comments
D
DC 1 hour ago
Ian Foster left to ponder what might have been after Tony Brown and Jamie Joseph recruitment misstep

foster was set up by tew and hansen. joseph was in japan and brown wasnt intrested .look what foster did to plumtree and mooor robinson hasnt helped with some of his decisions either

35 Go to comments
f
fl 1 hour ago
Ex-Wallaby laughs off claims Bath are amongst the best in the world

teams already don’t take the champions cup seriously, why would this be different?


there’s a club world cup in football, and from what I can tell no one really cares about it. Certainly when I was a child and actually followed football none of the top teams took it seriously.

27 Go to comments
D
DC 1 hour ago
Super Rugby is booming, but is it actually helping the All Blacks?

yes as the players are playing super rugby and scott robertsons allblackcoaching staff can see them playing and it can help with selections they make

20 Go to comments
I
IkeaBoy 1 hour ago
Super Rugby is booming, but is it actually helping the All Blacks?

They seemed to take it very seriously the 3 times they scalped the ABs in RWCs.

20 Go to comments
I
Icefarrow 2 hours ago
Super Rugby is booming, but is it actually helping the All Blacks?

France don’t take international Rugby seriously, that’s why. Can’t exactly win a World Cup if you’re not exposing your best players to all sorts of different and hostile environments.

20 Go to comments
I
IkeaBoy 2 hours ago
Super Rugby is booming, but is it actually helping the All Blacks?

I would’nt totally agree. The Top14 has been top of the food chain for a long time.


France are still awaiting their Webb Ellis.


England's - and the NHs - only RWC success wasn't necessarily on the strength of the English club game.

20 Go to comments
J
JW 2 hours ago
Moana Pasifika lock in Attacking Player of the Year for another season

Great signing, I really loved some of Faiilagi’s early season form, would have that in Black any day of the week. Tired a bit no doubt, but that’s comon for breakout players. Lets hope for some good PNC and another year in SR next year.

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JW 2 hours ago
The 40 men who should lead Australia into the Lions' den

4 Overseas-based players as in including the ones leaving?


I really don’t like the halves, especially the two 9s that have constantly let Australia down over the years with their antics, I’d have one at a pinch, probably Gordon on the basis of early SR season form, so it’s really a lottery. Not very sold on Ben or James either, but then I was looking at the Lions team and they also seemed fairly average when you break them down player by player.


That’s really what Joe has excelled at though, knitting a team together, lets hope that Farrell is hopeless at it.

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dw 2 hours ago
Has Quade Cooper solved a Lions riddle for Australia?

It is great to see.


Joe did talk about investing in the younger fly halves…but surely there is nothing wrong with holding 1 of them back to give JOC a crack in an important series.

47 Go to comments
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