David Pocock’s comeback delayed by knee surgery

DAVID Pocock’s long-awaited return to Australian rugby will be delayed by one more month after the star flanker had an operation last week to fix a knee problem.

Australia's flanker David Pocock.

DAVID Pocock’s long-awaited return to Australian rugby will be delayed by one more month after the star flanker had an operation last week to fix a knee problem.

Pocock, who spent last year on a sabbatical in Africa, the US and Japan, arrives back in Canberra on Monday to rejoin the Brumbies but it is expected he will miss the first four rounds of Super Rugby following surgery to repair a degenerative condition in his right knee.

Thankfully it is not the same knee Pocock has had reconstructed twice but it was determined that damage to his meniscus could lead to a more serious injury problem down the line.

Pocock had wanted to “hit the ground running” when he got back to the Brumbies but instead will be hobbling into the all-too-familiar rehab room.

“It is frustrating. I was really keen to get straight into it,” ­Pocock said.

“It is something I have been managing pretty well for quite a while now. I have kept talking to the Brums and there was definitely the option of continuing to manage it. But they just wanted me to get it sorted, which is fair enough, and probably the right call.”

David Pocock has gone for knee surgery.

Pocock returned to the field late last year in Japan, playing under Robbie Deans at Panasonic. They finished their season two weeks ago when beaten by Matt Giteau’s Suntory in the Top League final.

Pocock being granted a paid sabbatical season by Rugby Australia has been a contentious issue to some, and questions will now be asked why Pocock didn’t have the knee surgery during his time away from the game.

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In reality, the operation has a rehab period of “eight to 12 weeks” and in professional sport rehab is effectively full-time work.

Pocock, 29, spent six months in Africa based at a family farm in Zimbabwe, studying conservation. He also took a short leadership course at Harvard in the US.

David Pocock spent six months in Africa on his sabbatical year. Picture: Kirstin Scholtz

He said he was disappointed to not be able to get stuck straight into on-field duties back at the Brumbies but he is still returning to Aussie rugby physically and mentally refreshed.

“I am so glad for the time I was given to get away,” Pocock said. “And it wasn’t exactly how I’d planned it in my head but I certainly got away from rugby, and got into a different environment.

“I feel like I learned a lot about conservation and farming stuff, and then in leadership, being able to go to the States and do that short course.

David Pocock’s comeback has been delayed.

“And then it was also great to work with Robbie again at Panasonic, and Berrick (Barnes) and Digby (Ioane) and Sammy Wykes.

“I tried to learn as much as I could. I was part of an otherwise all-Japanese leadership team, so that was really interesting to see their way of doing things, and to get that insight.

“Absolutely I am rearing to go, which makes this setback disappointing. But I guess it is a lot better than it could have been if I’d left and something big happened.”

Originally published as David Pocock’s comeback delayed by knee surgery