EXPLOSIVE REDS AND Australia wing, Digby Ioane is a major doubt to face the Lions in the first Test on 22 June.
The 27-year-old has undergone an operation on the cartilage of his left knee, the Wallabies confirmed this morning.
Scoring at the rate of one try in every three Tests for his country, Ioane is the senior winger in Robbie Deans’ 25-man squad announced this week.
Should he fail to return in time for the first Test, Deans will turn to Nick Cummins, Joe Tomane, or shuffle his back-line to slot James O’Connor, Adam Ashley Cooper or Israel Folau into Ioane’s spot.
Ioane, who also missed out on Australia’s 6-15 defeat t Ireland at the 2011 World Cup, gives the Wallabies a potent weapon in the back-line with raw speed and agility to worry Tommy Bowe, Alex Cuthbert or whoever Warren Gatland selects on the right wing for the Lions.
His knee operation also means we probably won’t get to see any of his dance moves until much later in the tour.
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