Wallaroos Hopes: Charlotte Caslick Could Return for Women’s Rugby World Cup Finals
Wallaroos coach Jo Yapp is holding onto hope that Charlotte Caslick will rejoin the team for the crucial stage of the Women’s Rugby World Cup, after an ankle fracture prevented the attacking star from traveling to England. The Wallaroos departed Sydney on Monday for the global event that begins on August 22, but Caslick was a notable absence from the team as she recovered from syndesmosis surgery. The three-time Olympian and 2016 rugby sevens gold medalist was ruled out after revealing she had fractured her leg, and doctors declared she had no chance of participating in Australia’s first two group matches against Samoa and the United States.Charlotte Caslick’s Instagram post
With the Wallaroos needing two wins from their three group matches against Samoa, the United States and favourites England to reach the quarter-finals, Yapp says Caslick could still feature if they make the knockout stages starting September 13. “That’s what we expect,” said the coach. The 30-year-old player had taken a break from her sevens career, making a full-time switch to the 15-a-side code this year to add influence to the Wallaroos’ Cup load. Caslick had played five test matches and was starting to find her place in the center, scoring with her first touch against New Zealand before suffering the injury at the end of that same match last month. But the talent from the back line, who last week said rehabilitation was going well, has been replaced by the uncapped teenage center Manu’a Moleka, who joins her sister Faitala in the Wallaroos team. Australia, whose best result is third in seven World Cup appearances, begins its campaign against Samoa in Manchester on August 23. The Wallaroos will then face the United States in York on August 30 and the tournament hosts in Brighton on September 6.I really feel for Charlotte because we know what a brave decision it was. She fully embraced the 15 (players) game
Jo Yapp, Wallaroos coach
