Wallabies loose forward David Pocock has been ruled out of the rest of the Rugby Championship after breaking his hand in the 36-20 win over Argentina in Perth.
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Wallabies loose forward David Pocock.
Pocock has played just 12 of a possible 48 Tests since 2013, with two consecutive knee reconstructions and a myriad of unfortunate injuries hampering his progress.
The 28-year-old’s terrible luck with injuries continues as the backrower’s broken hand is the latest in a long line of personal woes after two separate knee reconstructions in 2013 and 2014.
Australia beat Argentina 36-20 in the Rugby Championship and handed New Zealand the title.
“It was quite swollen, so it was hard for him to move his hand”, Cheika told reporters.
“He wanted to play through, I had to take him off”, Cheika said post-match.
Saturday’s Test was Pocock’s last match on home soil ahead of a 2017 sabbatical from the game.
“Sean McMahon was outstanding with a couple of carries, which got us on the front foot”.
“They make some really good movement, we were wanting to take it to them but we made silly mistakes”, he said.
Debutant Lopeti Timani was solid in his first minutes for the Wallabies as well, giving the option of a more traditional number eight and impressing Hooper in his maiden outing.
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The All Blacks’ ability to seal the Rugby Championship with two rounds remaining highlighted the burgeoning gap between the world champions and the rest of the sides, though the team were not prepared to let their final games become footnotes.
