Australia vice-captain Berrick Barnes has been ruled out of Saturday's Bledisloe Cup Test against the All Blacks after rolling his left ankle at training in Tokyo.
X-rays revealed Barnes did not break anything but the full extent of his injury will not be known until the swelling subsides in the next 24-48 hours. Ligament damage, for instance, could rule him out of the grand slam tour of the UK and Ireland.
The Wallabies will meet England at Twickenham on Saturday, November 7th, while Declan Kidney’s side play host at Croke Park on the 15th.
Should he be sent back to Australia, it would be a devastating personal blow to the 23-year-old midfield general, as well as a huge setback to the Wallabies's grand slam chances.
Barnes lasted less than 20 minutes of last year's spring tour of Europe before breaking down with a knee injury against Italy that required an early journey home.
Barnes's scratching has prompted coach Robbie Deans to reshuffle his backline, promoting teenager James O'Connor from the bench to start at fullback and moving Adam Ashley-Cooper to inside centre.
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