Hook ruled out of series opener
17 Jun 2009
Lions flyhalf James Hook is unavailable for Test selection due to the head knock he sustained in Tuesday’s brutal outing in Port Elizabeth.
Hook left the field early in the game and was replaced by Ronan O’Gara who went on to play a significant role with the boot. On Wednesday, Lions assistant coach Rob Howley told keo.co.za Hook is being assessed on a day-to-day basis but will not feature in Saturday’s Test.
‘James injured his neck and his head when he took a tackle that was very high to be kind,’ said Howley. ‘It’s disappointing that he won’t be available for this Test as every time he’s played on this tour he’s done well. The length of his kicks has been good and obviously there was that match-winner against WP [last Saturday].
‘James has the ability to play 10, 12 or 13 and to lose a player of his quality is a big blow. I don’t know if he would have been in the Test 22, it’s a good question, but to have a player with that kind of versatility would certainly have been useful.’
Prop Euan Murray also left the field early in the Tuesday’s match with a sprained ankle. He was on crutches on Wednesday and is also being monitored closely.
The Lions’ Test 22 will be announced on Thursday.
By Jon Cardinelli, in Durban
28 Comments
17 Jun 2009, 10:33 am
Back up behind Jones and Ogara anyway….no biggie for the Lions
17 Jun 2009, 10:56 am
Hardly news worthy. Guess a ‘whatever’ is in order?
17 Jun 2009, 11:01 am
#1 bok1906: Yea, he might not have been a starter, but i think he would have been in the 22 for sure, purely because he can cover 10, 12, and 15, and he was they guy that would have taken their long penalty shots if he was on the field. Now that would be limited to going for posts only as far out as the 10m line, give or take a few.
17 Jun 2009, 11:19 am
Wonder if he will write a book now?
17 Jun 2009, 11:22 am
Keo… wheres the threads for the U20 world cup…. the first semi is well into the second half? NZ lead Aus 25-14, concersion to come, 16 mins left… SA vs Eng next… thought this was a rugby site?
17 Jun 2009, 11:23 am
#5 poppa69: scores 31-17, my mistake
17 Jun 2009, 11:26 am
#4 PissAnt:
#5 poppa69:
Seems you got the game in the bag, congrats…
Hopefully it will be an All Black – Springbok final
The best there is…
17 Jun 2009, 11:26 am
Filthy dirty Southern Kings!
17 Jun 2009, 11:26 am
#5 poppa69: Come on Keo! Make an effort! Stop writing stuff no one cares about James ‘critical moment of tour’ Hook.
Murray is much more valuable to the Lions.
17 Jun 2009, 11:28 am
#8 Dawn: Are you trying to be sarcastic?
17 Jun 2009, 11:33 am
#10 Breakdown Boy:
She would never be
17 Jun 2009, 11:40 am
#7 Blouste: I agree… next up is SA vs ENG, watching on justin TV , final score 31-17…
17 Jun 2009, 11:53 am
‘James injured his neck and his head when he took a tackle that was very high to be kind,’ said Howley.
What?
Thanks to being halfway through a tackle, Hook’s head was about 2 feet off the ground when Human (I think) connected him.
But what sort of comments do you expect from the *** coach of the bitter and whinish lions?
17 Jun 2009, 13:02 pm
I loved Alan Solomons comments after the game, teams used to hate going to EC because they new they were going to get into good old fashion physical stuff, like Merv – style in Sin City, The Kings brought back the good old days of the Boeta Erasmus stadium and I loved the Xhosa commentary on Ch3, it was hilarious and brought back old memories of listening to a game on Radio Xhosa
17 Jun 2009, 13:09 pm
#14 XhosaKid:
To me the Kings announced their arrival.
17 Jun 2009, 13:10 pm
Emphatically
17 Jun 2009, 13:13 pm
Bokkies score!!
17 Jun 2009, 13:58 pm
“The Kings announced their arrival” ??? How, since there was hardly a player in the team that will play for them!
17 Jun 2009, 13:59 pm
I was really sad to see De Wet Barry again thought I had seem the last of that dirty ****!
17 Jun 2009, 13:59 pm
Should bee seen obviously
17 Jun 2009, 14:04 pm
#18 Nightwalker:
Of course they won’t – especially since no other games has been confirmed for them…
17 Jun 2009, 14:24 pm
#15 PissAnt: Makhaya Jack who was commentating in Xhosa said ” Iinkosi zifikile, phakamani mawethu”
this means ” The Kings have arrived, let the nation rise!!!!”
17 Jun 2009, 14:50 pm
#22 XhosaKid:
I have extended my thoughts to Simon from Keo on this issue, which will apparently be published as a letter in the rugby mag at some stage (no idea when), but it basically supports the view of Makhaya Jack.
17 Jun 2009, 14:57 pm
Call up Wilko!
17 Jun 2009, 14:58 pm
#24 Big Hit:
They bloody need him
17 Jun 2009, 15:08 pm
#25 PissAnt: not impressed by the Lions then Pissant? I have to admit they haven’t looked great so far. Hopefully they’ll be competitive on Saturday tho.
17 Jun 2009, 15:12 pm
#26 Big Hit:
Not really BH…
But I have no doubt they will lift themselves for the test.
I am hoping for an historic series and a tough Lions outfit is crucial for the success of rugby globally and the future of the Lions brand.
17 Jun 2009, 20:33 pm
Just noticed Keo’s ‘Best of British and Irish Media’ in which he only quotes the one paper, The Times. Does he only read the one paper?
For instance, i think the Irish Times journalists write excellent pieces. They also have a brilliant blog written by Tommy Bowe in which, quite apart from other things, he reveals that Mike Blair likes to be called ‘Blade’ and dance nude in front of his room mates…
I wonder why….
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