'Wiggy' Out for Nine Months

Saracens scrum-half, Richard 'Wiggy' Wigglesworth, has been sidelined for the rest of the season with a serious injury. The rugby player hurt his anterior cruciate ligament during the Saracens' match against the Exeter Chiefs, on Sunday. He underwent surgery on Wednesday, to correct the problem.

However, despite the success of the operation, Wigglesworth has been ruled out of professional competition for nine months.

The anterior cruciate ligament is so frequently mentioned in reference to sports injuries that rarely is anything more than the acronym, ACL, needed to identify the body part. Tears or ruptures to the ACL, which is located in the knee, are caused by landing stiff-legged, when jumping, and, most frequently, making sharp changes in direction, without regard for the position of the joint. Pundits like Will Greenwood will be wishing him a speedy recovery.

Wigglesworth, who was an active member of the England World Cup squad, was described as one of the country's "stand-out players" by Mark McCall, chief at the Saracens. "It's a big blow for Wiggy. He has worked so hard in the past 18 months to get himself back in the England side." The 28-year-old will now miss the Six Nations tournament, which begins in February, next year. People looking at the onlinebetting will be wondering what impact this will have.

McCall has played down concerns about the Saracens squad, insisting that the St. Albans-based side are "not looking to recruit", in order to fill the void left by Wigglesworth. "It's a blow for us, but we are lucky to have two very good players in Neil de Kock and Ben Spencer, who have both performed so well, this season."

Worryingly, Wigglesworth is not the only England player to have returned from the World Cup in a less-than-ideal condition. Leicester Tigers player, Ben Youngs, picked up a knee problem in June, but, following corrective surgery, was able to play as normal. The condition was somehow renewed during his international 'call of duty'.

Leicester's director of rugby, Richard Cockerill, was suspicious: "He left us four months ago fully fit and has come back with a pretty average knee, so we need to get on top of that."