Injured Wallabies star eyeing Bledisloe Cup return once foot faults are fixed
Angus Bell dejected after their loss to the All Blacks in Melbourne in 2023.
Injured Waratahs and Wallabies front-row Angus Bell is hoping that a reshaping of his foot will help him to overcome his injury problems and he could make a return to action sooner than expected.
The highly-rated loosehead prop is back on the sidelines after suffering a toe injury during a dominant scrum in the Waratahs’ defeat to the Brumbies in their Round Seven Super Rugby Pacific clash in Canberra last month.
Reaggravated old injury
It was revealed that the 23-year-old sustained damage to the ligament in his big toe – an injury which has bothered him previously over the past two seasons as well.
Since his latest injury setback, Bell has seen renowned surgeon Ben Forster, who also worked on Western Force and Wallabies lock Izack Rodda’s foot problems, to remodel his foot.
And while Bell will not be in action at Super Rugby Pacific level again this year, the latest procedure on his foot could see him being involved in Test action for Australia.
“If it was someone else that had done it, it’s only a six-week injury but since it’s me I have to reshape my foot again, which will help in the long run,” Bell told Rugby Australia’s official website.
“Biomechanically, I’ve got high arches and a stiff foot so they want to relieve that pressure and lower the shape of my foot.
Wallaby reaggravates old injury in Waratahs’ defeat to Brumbies
“I saw a specialist in Queensland who did that along with Izack Rodda and a few other boys and most of the Achilles that have gone through the Wallabies. He’s very trusted and it all went well from all accounts.
“Hopefully I’ll make some of the Test stuff, it’ll all depend on how we sit in the big picture so all I can do right now is put my head down and train as hard as I can… I’ve had the surgery, done my two weeks in the cast and I’ll be ready, stronger and now trying to better myself.”
Could be back for Bledisloe Tests
The four-month injury timeline means Bell could be ready for Australia’s Bledisloe Cup Tests with New Zealand, which is set to get underway in Sydney on September 21.
Bell will be delighted that he could be involved in the Wallabies’ international campaign, as he spent most of the 2023 season on the sidelines due to a similar injury.
“It happens on a dominant scrum, so we had a good push on the Brumbies, and as we were going forward and through them, I felt that same sensation,” he recalled.
“I was really lucky in the sense that I’ve done so much rehab and prep on my foot that I didn’t actually do too much damage to the original repair of the tendons in my foot, it was in another area in the foot that needed to be repaired.
“You catastrophise a bit (when it happens) but I got a call from the doctor to say it wasn’t as bad (as last time) so it was a very good call.”