Thursday 27th September 2007
Time is running out for veteran fly-half Stephen Larkham to make a World Cup comeback after he spent Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday in a Montpellier hospital recovering from his second knee operation of the World Cup.
While Larkham remains optimistic about his prospects of returning for a possible Wallaby semi-final, it has to be said that the likelihood of him playing another World Cup game is rather slim indeed.
"I do feel a lot better than yesterday, and the swelling has come down a bit, " a spirited Larkham told the Sydney Morning Herald on Thursday.
The Wallaby pivot can't even walk without crutches yet, let alone run and doctors say it could take at least four more days before they can determine Larkham's immediate rugby future.
One has to also consider the fact that a semi-final place is by no means guaranteed for the Wallabies.
Likewise Larkham's match fitness when and if he plays another World Cup game will be questioned in any event. The pivot is not giving up nevertheless.
"I am hoping everything will be cleared out by Monday, and I am certainly hoping of playing again in this World Cup," Larkham said.
Larkham was released from hospital on Thursday and will travel with his team to Bordeaux for the clash against Canada.
He will take solace from the fact that the extent of the knee infection could have been far worse.
"Thankfully, the infection was on the outside of the knee, and not within the knee joint. Our team doctor [Martin Raftery] definitely made the right decision of me returning to hospital as soon as possible, and we were able to get at it early enough. So I am feeling lot more happier now."
Coach John Connolly might be forced to make a team decision at some stage - like calling in a replacement fly-half - but there is a danger of sentimentality clouding his judgment.
"We've got to give him time," said assistant coach Scott Johnson.
"You owe it to the team and you owe it to Stephen [Larkham] to give him as much chance as we can. Now that we're through [to the quarter-finals], we've bought ourselves some time.
"It is always discouraging when a player gets some issues he didn't expect. It is his swan song, and he doesn't want to cut it short," added Johnson.
Even the optimistic Wallaby selector couldn't deny that although team doctor Martin Raftery said Larkham should return for the semi-final, it didn't mean he would definitely be available for the likely clash against the All Blacks.
As a result Johnson has opted to not get ahead of himself in the interim.
"The first job is to get that swelling down. If we can get that down pretty quickly, we are going to be on target. If we fail to get that down, or he doesn't respond, then it is going to be slower.
"In a week's time, we'll be able to give a much clearer picture of where we are heading," said Johnson.
Until then the whole of Australia shall await with baited breath.
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