Breakout All Blacks star in doubt for Chiefs

01/16/2025 03:27 AM

INJURY REPORT: World Rugby breakthrough player of the year Wallace Sititi is in doubt for the 2025 Super Rugby Season following a knee injury sustained on the All Blacks' end-of-year tour.

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The Chiefs are anxiously waiting to find out whether Sititi will miss their entire Super Rugby campaign, according to the New Zealand Herald.

The loose forward sustained a previously undisclosed knee injury on the All Blacks' end-of-year tour, where he finished an outstanding breakthrough season by playing 80 minutes in all five Tests.

Sititi's performances in the northern hemisphere helped him to be crowned the 2024 World Rugby breakthrough player of the year.

At some point during the tour - as yet unknown to Chiefs head coach Clayton McMillan - he suffered an injury that put his 2025 season in jeopardy.

Sititi will undergo surgery to discover the extent of the damage, having waited weeks for an appointment that seems set to deliver bad news.

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"The fact that he's got to have surgery gives you an indication that it's reasonably serious," McMillan said.

"He's able to walk around, so it's one of those little niggles that you never truly know the extent of until you get under the surgeon's knife and they can give some clarity."

McMillan was unable to offer clarity about when the injury occurred, with Sititi and his fellow All Blacks on break and away from their Super Rugby sides until later this month.

A prognosis will be known soon after the surgery and likely bring a significant setback to a Chiefs outfit coming off consecutive runner-up finishes.

"A huge loss," McMillan said.

"Everyone's seen how he's played over the last 12 months and it's never nice to lose players of that calibre.

"It's unfortunate that he's just not out there playing.

"He generates a lot of excitement for his ability, we'll miss him, and all we can do is jump in behind the young man and help with his rehab – however long that takes – and get him back out on the field."

Sititi played a huge role in the 2024 Super Rugby Pacific Final, starting his rookie campaign on the bench before breaking into the starting side with dynamic ball-carrying and a skillset that drew the attention of the All Blacks selectors.

The Chiefs remained careful to manage the 22-year-old's workload while his importance steadily grew.

Having been restricted to 40 minutes across the opening six rounds of the season, Sititi started in the back row in six of the next eight (rounds), only playing twice beyond the 66th minute.

With reporting by the New Zealand Herald