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Alex Sanderson has warned that Tom Curry’s physical playing style will shorten his career and has suggested England should give him the summer off with the World Cup next year in mind.
The back-rower sustained a calf injury in the warmup for England’s Six Nations defeat by Italy in Rome. Sanderson, the Sale director of rugby, said on Tuesday that Curry has a grade-three calf tear and “he’ll be back this season” – but when remains unclear. “With Tom being superhuman the usual layoff times tend to be diminished because of his character and physique,” Sanderson said.
The 27-year-old Curry had surgery on a persistent wrist injury after the British & Irish Lions tour last summer, sidelining him until November, and also has a chronic hip condition. He was out for eight months from late in 2023 after hip surgery and has endured a litany of other injuries in recent seasons.
Sanderson believes taking time off for injury rehabilitation may help Curry extend his career, but also admits the flanker’s all-action on-field approach will realistically shorten it, too.
“The physicality he plays at is definitely going to shorten his playing career from 35 to 32, something like that,” Sanderson said. “But the less games he plays the longer his career. He’s not going to play over the next few weeks and we’ll see how it goes.
“There’s a question around a summer tour. Does he need that? Does he need it to be in the best place for the World Cup? Is it better that he just has a few months off over the summer? That’s for us to discuss with England.”
In the inaugural Nations Championship, Steve Borthwick’s side will travel to South Africa to play the Springboks on 4 July, then meet Fiji in Liverpool on 11 July, before a second long-haul trip to face Argentina a week later. Post-Lions fatigue may have contributed to England’s dismal Six Nations performance and Sanderson is keen to manage Curry’s workload.
“We’ll sit down and look at a two-year plan,” Sanderson said. “The way he plays and the way he’s managed will have an effect on his career, 100%. We are on top of it and I don’t think I’d want to change the way he plays.”
Sanderson said that Sale are “hoping for Europe” for Curry’s return, which may mean the Champions Cup quarter-finals in mid-April or the final stages in May – if the Sharks can get past Harlequins in the round of 16 on 4 April.
“Let’s see how it goes with regards to that competition,” Sanderson said. “We’ve still got to get there, but that’s the average time [three months recovery for the calf tear] it takes for a human being that isn’t as physically fit, who doesn’t have all the 24-hour, round-the-clock physio treatment, the oxygen tents.
“All of that speeds the process up, as well as Tom’s commitment to getting fit again. Europe would be the best thing that could ever happen to us, but with these things there’s the best solution, or timeframe, which I’ve given to you, or the worst which is what you’re talking about. I’ve not heard it’s three months at all – he’ll be back this season.”
Meanwhile the Saracens director of rugby, Mark McCall, said Maro Itoje and Jamie George will be rested for the Prem encounter against Bath on Friday.
“We’ll definitely rest Maro and Jamie George immediately,” he said. “It’s been a very busy six or seven weeks for them both physically and emotionally. I think the right thing for those two players is to get a rest right away.”
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