Sport

Wood and Miller to miss the final Test

IRELAND HOOKER Keith Wood and number eight Eric Miller will take no further part in the Lions tour due to injury

By EDMUND VAN ESBECK
Thu Jul 03 1997 - 01:00

IRELAND HOOKER Keith Wood and number eight Eric Miller will take no further part in the Lions tour due to injury. Both have been ruled out of contention for places in the third and final Test against South Africa at Ellis Park on Saturday.

Left wing Alan Tait, who sustained a groin injury in the second Test, is also out, so there will be at least two changes in the team for next Saturday.

Prop Jason Leonard, who was on the bench for the two Tests and came on as replacement in the first, is another casualty. His tour is over because of a thigh muscle injury he sustained playing against Northern Free State on Tuesday.

It is an unfortunate end to the tour for all concerned and, in particular, for two Irish players who made such an impact over the last six weeks. It is especially frustrating for Miller, who felt yesterday morning that he was in with a chance of being fit, but failed to come through a training session.

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"It went again and I knew then that my tour was over," he said, on his return to the team hotel. "It is frustrating, as I would love to be involved next Saturday." Miller damaged a thigh muscle after he came on as a replacement during the second Test at King's Park, Durban, last weekend.

Wood, who has been ruled out by the groin injury he sustained in the final minutes of the second Test, had no real prospect of recovery in the time available.

Miller was selected for the first Test, but was unable to play because of a bout of flu. Despite a great performance against Free State last Tuesday week, the back row for the second Test was left unaltered. But he, at least, has the consolation of having come on as a replacement.

Announcing the unavailability of all four players, Lions manager Fran Cotton said: "They are all frontline players who have been involved in the Tests and are a great loss. We do have immense strength and depth in the squad but their unavailability does limit our options," The team will be announced this afternoon.

Wood said the injury will take about a month to clear and added: "Obviously I would very much like to be playing next Saturday, but at least we have won the series and I am very pleased to have been involved. We are two up now and have a great chance of making it a whitewash. Things have certainly changed since the start of the series."

Meanwhile, two of the Springboks front row, hooker Naka Drotske and tight head Adrian Garvey, have both been dropped by the Springboks for the third Test.

Barry Williams is the man likely to come in for Wood and Tim Rodber will obviously retain the number eight berth. Replacing Tait on the left wing will prove a more thought-provoking problem for the Lions management.

Tony Underwood, who scored three tries against Northern Free State on Tuesday, is an obvious contender. But there is speculation that Jeremy Guscott could be moved to the wing and Alan Bateman brought into the centre to partner Scott Gibbs. Tony Stimpson represents another option, but the Lions may opt to bring in Underwood as a direct replacement for Tait.

Cotton, so annoyed after the Lions' win over Northern Free State on Tuesday, has decided not to cite any of the Northern players after studying the video. "We have decided not to cite any player, but have drawn the attention of the Northern Free State Union to the matter," he said.

With England due to play Australia in a Test in Sydney on Saturday week, most of the English players in the squad will be travelling there on Sunday. As expected, Jeremy Guscott has withdrawn and so, now, has Jason Leonard.

Lions captain Martin Johnson is another who will not be making the trip. He is due to have an operation on a troublesome groin problem as soon as he returns after the Lions tour. Scrum-half Kyran Bracken, who joined the Lions as a replacement and injured, a shoulder on Tuesday, will be fit to travel to Australia.

But with so many of the Lions squad not returning home after the weekend, the squad will not get the traditional welcome accorded to a Lions team that has won a Test series. In those circumstances, it has been decided that the squad will be brought together for a weekend, either at the end of August, or early in September.