Crusaders ‘unable to determine’ Will Jordan’s recovery timeline after All Blacks star suffers worrying knee injury
Will Jordan in action for the All Blacks and Crusaders (James Foy/Speed Media/Alamy).
The Crusaders will provide another update on injured All Blacks star Will Jordan later in the week after an initial investigation failed to determine a timeline for recovery.
Jordan suffered a knee issue in the Christchurch-based outfit’s 35-19 defeat to the Chiefs in Saturday’s huge Super Rugby Pacific encounter.
The 27-year-old was replaced at the end of the first quarter and his absence was keenly felt by Rob Penney’s men, who saw the visitors overturn a 19-3 deficit by scoring 32 unanswered points.
Crusaders statement
“Will Jordan suffered a medical ligament sprain on Saturday night against the Chiefs,” the Crusaders said in a statement.
“The Crusaders medical team are unable to determine his return to play time frame at this stage; they are gathering more information and will have an update later this week.”
While Jordan’s injury will be a worry for both the player and the franchise, it will also concern Scott Robertson and the All Blacks.
Whether at wing or full-back, the speedster has established himself as one of the premier international back three players in the game.
It was at 15 – a position many observers have been wanting to see him in – where Jordan shone for New Zealand in 2024.
Robertson will hope that his injury will not keep him on the sidelines for too long with a three-Test series against France looming in July.
However, the Crusaders believe that “initial indications” suggest that Jordan “will return to play before the end of the Super Rugby Pacific competition.”
Crusaders’ struggles without Jordan
Robertson and Penney will certainly be delighted if that is the case when the 27-year-old is evaluated further this week.
The Crusaders struggled to break down the Chiefs defence in the second period on Saturday with the visitors controlling the clash without Jordan on the field.
“I thought the Chiefs deserved their victory. They dominated large facets of the game and put us under a bit of pressure,” Penney said.
“Our response now is the critical piece, [we were] taught a bit of a lesson and how we respond to that now is going to be critical.
“I don’t necessarily think they’ve got a psychological advantage and we haven’t even contemplated what beyond next week looks like, because we’ve got a massive battle against the Waratahs to ensure that we establish ourselves, in some semblance, at the top and we’re still masters of our own destiny in that regard.”
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