Antoine Dupont confirms the worst after horror knee injury against Ireland
Antoine Dupont being carried off the field against Ireland
The extent of Antoine Dupont’s injury has now been confirmed, with the French captain taking to social to confirm he has suffered a ruptured ACL.
As exclusively revealed by Planet Rugby yesterday, the scrum-half is now set for an extended period on the sidelines.
Antoine Dupont confirms ACL rupture
The Toulouse star was taken off early into France’s 42-27 win over Ireland at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday and was replaced by Bordeaux-Begles counterpart Maxime Lucu.
“The heart hurts even more than the knee when you have to leave your friends before the last step. I am proud of what we accomplished yesterday and all my strength is with you, you will do it.”
Le coeur est encore plus douloureux que le genou au moment de devoir abandonner les copains avant la dernière marche. Je suis fier de ce que nous avons accompli hier et de toutes mes forces avec vous, vous allez le faire.
Rupture des ligaments croisés. C’est le début d’un nouveau… pic.twitter.com/shQK4PSLsk— 𝗔𝗻𝘁𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗗𝗨𝗣𝗢𝗡𝗧 (@Dupont9A) March 9, 2025
“Rupture of the cruciate ligaments. This is the beginning of a new challenge, I’ll see you in a few months on the field.”
Dupont’s Six Nations Championship is now officially over, leaving France head coach Fabien Galthie with a major headache ahead of their clash with Scotland.
Lucu, who has been the only back selected by Galthie to go on the 7/1 bench, is the likely starter given he has been involved throughout the Championship, but Nolann le Garrec is also a potential replacement to come into the starting line-up.
On pense très fort à toi ! 🫶❤️🩹
On est tous à tes côtés capitaine @Dupont9A.
Tu reviendras encore plus fort 🙏#NeFaisonsXV pic.twitter.com/5Qik1DFVXc— France Rugby (@FranceRugby) March 9, 2025
Planet Rugby also understands Toulon scrum-half Baptiste Serin, who recently won the Top 14 Player of the Month, has been drafted in to Galthie’s wider squad and is also a possible option to slot straight into the Test side given his recent club exploits.
The usual return timeline for an injury of this kind is between 6-12 months.
