ENGLAND RUGBY OFFICIALS have been forced to deny claims relating to a recent injury that Harlequins number eight Nick Easter picked up.
Many people, including The Guardian’s Robert Kitson, speculated that Easter had been hurt while taking part in a 134-metre bungee jump, which had been organised as part of a team bonding session.
The late injury meant James Haskell was forced to start in place of Easter against Georgia, while Thomas Waldrom has been called up to the squad as a precautionary measure.
However, the England management told the Press Association that the fact that Easter’s injury occurred in conjunction with the team’s bungee jumping excursions was a pure coincidence.
They said that the player only began to feel the strain on Saturday – four days after the squad had gone bungee jumping.
Meanwhile, the team held what has been described as a “brutally honest” meeting to discuss their recent unconvincing form.
Speaking about the meeting, Steve Thompson said:
“We’ve been together a long time and the last thing you want is for things to get comfortable. Sometimes everyone needs to give each other a little boot up the backside and that’s what’s happening.”
James Haskell had previously criticised his teammates, saying under-performing players should be singled out and indicating that the team were not working hard enough.
