Wales: Ospreys flanker Justin Tipuric to miss the rest of the season due to shoulder injury

Ospreys head coach Toby Booth says that Wales international Justin Tipuric is likely to spend the rest of the season on the sidelines due to his ongoing shoulder injury.

Tipuric sustained the issue in the British and Irish Lions’ warm-up match against Japan, which ruled him out of the trip to South Africa.

The initial prognosis was six months, meaning the flanker was scheduled to be back in December, but he has since suffered complications.

Never seen in rugby

“No, no we are not (expecting to see him this season),” Booth told reporters. “It’s time. The nature of the injury has never been seen in rugby before.

“It’s an injury that resembles more a road traffic accident, so we need to make sure that we’re in a 100 per cent right position for him to come back and come back safely.

“The injury didn’t happen with us but it was a collision injury and a direct impact injury.

“It’s like a road accident and you hit the road — it’s that sort of level of impact. If you’re in a position on the ground and you can’t move then the force has to go somewhere and it goes through the body rather than through the floor. That’s the nature of the injury.”

Tipuric was set to make his comeback but the Ospreys’ medical team realised that the shoulder hadn’t quite healed fully.

“We got him back to a point in December — which was encouraging — where he had alleviated the majority of the issues but the last little bit is always the hardest part.

“Luckily we spotted it before he took to the pitch and could have re-injured himself.

“We’re in a situation now where we have to give the true amount of rehab and diligence to what is a significant injury. There’s no rush to get him back and we just want to get him back and playing to the best of his ability.”

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