Delon Armitage to return after autumn internationals
September 17, 2009
London Irish full-back, Delon Armitage, won’t play any of England’s autumn internationals following an injury sustained while playing for his club.
Armitage recently dislocated his shoulder and will need 12 weeks recovery following an operation. This means he will miss the Tests against Australia, Argentina and New Zealand as well as some of the early games in the Heineken Cup.
Despite missing out on a place on this winter’s Lions rugby tour, Armitage has been a key part of the England side in recent times, playing in all of last season’s Six Nations fixtures and even receiving a nomination for Player of the Tournament.
Armitage joins centre Riki Flutey on the sidelines, meaning England must fill two key places in their backline. Martin Johnson is seeing the positive side however:
“Injuries happen. We have to get them back playing and look at the next guys in line. There are some very good young players in the Saxons group and some good players outside it.”
At present, Olly Morgan is the only other full-back in the England squad, although players such as Mathew Tait and Mark Cueto have played in the position previously. Meanwhile, Shane Geraghty has been mentioned as a possible replacement for Flutey at centre.
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Comment by Patrick Arnold LWTL — September 18, 2009 @ 3:13 pm