All Blacks fullback Israel Dagg has undergone surgery on a ruptured tendon in his right thigh and could be out of rugby for anything between two to five months, the Canterbury Crusaders said on Tuesday.
Dagg injured his leg executing a clearing kick in the Crusaders’ 20-14 victory over the Stormers in Cape Town on May 7. He was one of four Crusaders’ players sent home from South Africa after the match and had surgery on Monday.
Utility Adam Whitelock also had surgery on his torn pectoral muscle, while winger Sean Maitland (foot) is scheduled to have surgery on Wednesday.
The Crusaders said a definitive time frame on each of their recoveries would be known within the next few days though it could range from two to five months.
Local media reported that Dagg would be out for at least three months, meaning he would miss the truncated Tri-Nations in July/August and his likely inclusion in Graham Henry’s All Blacks World Cup squad for the Sept. 9-Oct. 23 tournament in New Zealand was in doubt.
They also said Maitland and Whitelock would not play Super rugby again this season.
Scrumhalf Kahn Fotuali’i, the fourth player sent home after the Stormers’ match, has a medial ligament sprain in his right knee and is expected to be unavailable for four to six weeks.
The Crusaders play fellow New Zealand side the Waikato Chiefs in Napier on Saturday.
They have moved the game to McLean Park because of the Feb.
22 earthquake that devastated Christchurch and badly damaged Lancaster Park.
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