Jamie George limped off with a hamstring problem late on in Saracens’ 32-24 Champions Cup defeat by Castres, which made him a doubt for the Six Nations to compound a miserable week for the England international.
Replaced as England captain by club-mate Maro Itoje when Steve Borthwick named his Six Nations squad on Tuesday, he then picked up an injury at the StoneX Stadium that calls into question his inclusion against Ireland on February 1.
George came on for two tries to front row Theo Dan in the 55th minute but was forced off in the closing stages with Saracens unable to show the extent of the injury.
“Jamie has injured his hamstring. We’re not quite sure how serious the hamstring is at the moment,” director of rugby Mark McCall said.
George’s late withdrawal and a serious knee injury suffered by Toby Knight added to a frustrating afternoon in north London, where Castres finally won after 21 consecutive away defeats in the Champions Cup.
The defeat was damaging for Saracens as they went through a round of 16 home defeat and now have to travel to face Toulon.
“It was a really poor performance from us. Castres fully deserved to win the game and we got what we deserved too, which is hard to say,” McCall said.
“Our mentality for some reason wasn’t right and that’s for me and the coaches. It was a really disappointing day. Castres definitely fired us up. They were really ready for the game.
George was replaced as England captain earlier this week by club-mate Maro Itoje
“We had a lot of the ball but we were poor with it and they defended against us with ease. Then they struck when opportunities presented themselves. It was such a disappointing day.
“All 15 players they brought in had played in the last five weeks, but not together.
“It wasn’t a bunch of kids, they were proper rugby players and we tried to communicate that to the team. We just weren’t quite there mentally.”
Scotland captain Tuipulotu is also a doubt for the Six Nations with a chest injury
Scotland boss Gregor Townsend is facing a pre-Six Nations sweat too after key pair Sione Tuipulotu and Scott Cummings emerged as injury concerns ahead of the championship.
There is particular concern over the fitness of captain Tuipulotu, who has suffered a pectoral injury, with Glasgow boss Franco Smith hinting – but refusing to confirm – that he fears a lengthy spell on the sidelines for the center.
The 27-year-old played no part in Saturday’s Champions Cup defeat to Harlequins.
Asked for an update on Tuipulotu shortly after the game, Smith said: “He had a rating. I don’t know his grade yet.
“I think he might have hurt his lower arm. It was a freak injury. It was something that happened. We weren’t suspicious about it, we just wanted to make sure it wasn’t anything serious. But we’ll have more much clarity tomorrow.”
Scotland captain Sione Tuipulotu has suffered a chest injury in training with Glasgow.
Asked how much of a blow it would be if Tuipulotu – widely expected to feature in the Lions’ British and Irish squad this summer – misses one or all of the Championship, Smith said little to quell the concern the influential full-back is facing with a period aside.
“It’s not just the player, but as a person and a player in our environment, he brings a lot of confidence to the people around him,” he said.
“So I think it will be a loss for everybody if it’s that serious, but I still think there’s plenty of season left for him to contribute, so hopefully it’s not as bad an injury as it will be especially tall.
“He will go to the Scotland camp and be managed by their medical team as well, so as a collective all communication will be once we have clarity on what the outcome is.
“I’ll just say I don’t know at the moment, let’s see what the result means.”
