5 Big Names in Danger of Missing 2015 Rugby World Cup Due to Injury

The World Cup is now approaching its two-month countdown, and squads will soon be trimmed as training camps progress and the summer playing schedule gets under way.

In the Southern Hemisphere, a shortened Rugby Championship gives coaches a competitive environment in which to assess their troops, while in Europe, a host of warm-up matches between the big guns will allow players the chance to impress the selectors.

For some, however, the last eight weeks before kick-off are a desperate race against the clock.

The nature of the sport decrees that there will always be a clutch of talented players nursing injuries of one type or another.

But the timeframe to prove fitness is a short one, with coaches required to name their final 31-man squads by August 31.

And that means there are some big names in danger of missing out unless they can put their injury woes behind them.

Here are five players racing for the treatment room exit door.

1. Duane Vermeulen, South Africa

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Duane Vermeulen is suffering from a neck problem that required surgery, and he is a major doubt for the autumn.

The Stormers No. 8 has been second only to Kieran Read as the world’s best No. 8 in recent seasons, and he will link up with European champions Toulon after the tournament in England.

But his involvement for the Boks in a bid to claim a third Webb Ellis Cup looks highly endangered. The 29-year-old’s ball-carrying and link play is a central plank in Heyneke Meyer’s game plan for the Boks, and his loss will leave a large hole in the squad.

His surgery went well, per football365.com, but the long road to recovery has only just started for the big back-rower. 

Meyer told supersport.com:

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Duane is mentally very tough and he is a warrior who has always bled for his country and I'm expecting exactly the same attitude from him towards his rehabilitation. He is a team player who has often played through the pain barrier and I know nothing will hold him back, while we will do everything we can to get Duane ready in time for the World Cup.

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2. Willem Alberts, South Africa

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The Springboks’ back-row problems are not just confined to the speed of Vermeulen’s recovery.

Loose forward Willem Alberts has a range of issues that look set to preclude him from almost any game time before the pool stages begin, per supersport.com.

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There isn’t one specific injury plaguing Alberts, rather a myriad of different issues that take turns to flare up every time he gets back onto the training field and which is understandably starting to make (Heyneke)Meyer concerned.

"Willem is struggling with three injuries at the moment and he had an operation last year. Every time he puts an effort in he gets more and more injured, and that is a concern for us," said Meyer.

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If both Alberts and Vermeulen don’t make the cut, that could shear two thirds of Meyer’s first-choice back-row trio.

3. Cian Healy, Ireland

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Irish loose head Cian Healy has spoken publicly about the severity of the neck injury the Leinsterman suffered last season.

He told Ryan Tubridy on 2FM (via the Irish Independent):

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I was told this needs to be fixed you can’t continue without fixing it and let’s do it. You have the top surgeons on your side and you listen to what they say. If it’s a neck surgery and it could have left me paralysed and it might if I didn’t get it fixed and that’s the way my head thinks. They assured me that it wasn’t a situation like that. I was happy to be told that I’d be able to play rugby again.

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The Lion missed the last two months of the season as a result but is in Joe Schmidt’s extended squad and has the summer’s warm-up games to return to fitness.

But it has been a long time out for the 27-year-old, and it remains to be seen if his body can stand up to the rigours of a tough training camp and the demands of a tournament the Irish are hoping to go deep into.

Speaking to Tubridy (via the Irish Examiner), he continued: "Now we’re back into building up the muscle, and kind of build a protection layer." 

Healy made it back into the Irish starting XV for the final game of the Six Nations after playing back-up to Mike McCarthy during the first four rounds, but the operation he underwent leaves him back down the pecking order until he can show his coach he is back to his ebullient best.

4. Liam Williams, Wales

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Wales have already suffered a major blow with the news that centre Jonathan Davies will miss the tournament after suffering knee ligament damage playing for his club side Clermont, per walesonline.co.uk.

But Warren Gatland's back line has been dealt a further setback with the surgery required on full-back Liam Williams' foot, per Mail Online.

Walesonline.co.uk's Delme Parfitt wrote:

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It’s the scale of Williams’ setback that will be key to whether he makes it for the autumn. Let's hope it's not for long and he has enough time to recover, but there's only so long any coach can wait.

We can be sure Warren Gatland will cut the Scarlets man as much slack as possible because he is no longer a luxury to Wales. He is one of our most potent attacking weapons.

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5. Samson Lee, Wales

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Wales' tighthead prop Samson Lee is another key member of Warren Gatland's squad racing against time.

The Scarlets tyro, who was making an impressive fist of his accession to the shirt worn for so long by Adam Jones, damaged his achilles tendon in Wales' Six Nations encounter with Ireland.

Initially, it looked like the end of his World Cup chances, per Gatland's comments reported by BBC Sport in March.

But he has made progress and now stands a chance of being involved. He was named in the training squad announced in June, and forwards coach Robin McBryde told the South Wales Evening Post:

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We have a lot of faith in our medical team and our physios. They have proven time and again how effective they can be. We also know with Samson, whatever is asked of him he will do it because he is desperate to get his shirt back and be part of a Welsh World Cup squad.

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