After Romain Ntamack, have the Blues already lost another major player for the rest of the Rugby World Cup? Friday evening, hooker Julien Marchand was injured in the 12th minute of the opening match of the World Cup against New Zealand, replaced by his teammate in Toulouse Peato Mauvaka.
The leader of the French forward pack, who had scratched a ball earlier in the match, was hit on a clearance in a ruck. His opposite Codie Taylor fell on his left knee, visibly the victim of hyperextension. If he tried to resume the game after having his thigh bandaged, and not his knee, the Toulouse man had to resolve to go out.
On the bench, we then saw the Blues doctor Philippe Turbin manipulate his knee and perform the “drawer test”, carried out to try to detect a possible ligament rupture. While waiting for the exams that Julien Marchand will take, there will be great concern about his future in the competition.
