The silence is deafening.
It’s nearly been five weeks since Johnny Sexton exited the fray in Ireland’s bruising defeat to the All Blacks at the Aviva Stadium.
Soon after that game it was announced that Sexton would be taking a break from the game in an attempt to solve his troubling hamstring injury.
In the five weeks proceeding that loss to New Zealand, there has been next to nothing in terms of concrete information relating to a comeback date for Ireland’s star fly-half.
At the weekend, a question relating to Sexton’s fitness was put to Leo Cullen in the aftermath of his sides emphatic victory over Northampton.
Cullen remained coy and revealed very little, only stating that he would see how Sexton felt during the week before making any comments on whether he could be fit for the eagerly awaited clash against Munster on St. Stephens Day.
He didn't exactly rule him out for St. Stephen's Day https://t.co/3pUscuKSPa
— SportsJOE (@SportsJOEdotie) December 18, 2016
It is clear that any indication of a comeback date for Sexton will be made by both Ireland and Leinster management.
The IRFU’s high performance director, David Nucifora, spoke today in relation to Sexton’s injury and he stated that both Leinster’s and Ireland’s medical teams came together to develop the best recovery plan for the 31-year-old.
“So the medical teams got together and put a plan in place and its about the player, its about making sure we get him over the issues he has at the moment.”
In terms of a comeback date, all Nucifora said in this regard was that Sexton was “on the road” to being fully fit.
“So its about having a plan in place to get him back to 100% fitness. So he’s well on the road to that and we would be confident that is going to happen.”
It seems like the Irish and Leinster medical staff are being very careful with Sexton at the moment with the main aim of fully resolving his current issue – they don’t want Sexton breaking down again a few weeks after returning from injury.
“We got to a point with Johnny there where he was breaking down with a hamstring issue. If that took a prolonged period of time to get him right then that’s what everyone agreed needed to be done.”
“If he comes back fitter and stronger then he’s going to be there and able to play for all the teams hes contracted to play for, for the rest of the season, that’s the aim.”
Nucifora tries to see the positive of the whole situation as he references the experiences which a young player such as Ross Byrne has gained due to Sexton’s absence.
Nonetheless, Sexton’s injury must be a major concern for Ireland right now. It’s a case of reading into what Nucifora and Cullen are not saying.
As we reach five weeks with no concrete date set in stone for a return and with only vague comments relating to the injury, a picture is beginning to emerge that Sexton’s injury may be a lot more worse than originally feared.
You can see Nucifora’s comments in relation to Sexton below.
David Nucifora on Sexton – 'It's about having a plan to get him back to 100% fitness for @leinsterrugby & @irishrugby' pic.twitter.com/CMxavwV8tP
— Irish Rugby (@IrishRugby) December 22, 2016
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