England and Sale Sharks star Tom Curry to miss rest of season with hip injury that requires surgery

England and Sale Sharks’ Tom Curry is set to miss the rest of the season with a hip injury that requires surgery.

The flanker was part of Steve Borthwick’s side that fell agonisingly short against South Africa in the semi-finals of the Rugby World Cup before earning his 50th cap as England secured third with a hard-fought win over Argentina.

Curry hasn’t played for Sale since rugby’s showpiece event in France and will likely not feature for the remainder of the 2023/24 Gallagher Premiership Rugby campaign after a specialist uncovered the extent of the damage to his hip.

In a further setback, it will also mean Curry won’t feature in next year’s Six Nations, which gets underway on February 2 and finishes on March 16.

“This is the only option,” Sale director of rugby Alex Sanderson said. “Tom has been back down to London to have further extensive X-rays under movement with a different consultant and this is the best thing for him in the short term.

“I know it sounds long-term - the season - but it’s not. He’s still a young lad and it’s the best thing for him in the short term to ensure he’s able to be more robust moving forward and to train and progress his game the way he wants to.

“He has just got some wear and tear issues around his socket and a little bone that needs shaving off and cleaning up.

“My understanding is there are three procedures you can have on your hip of this nature. One is this, which is the least invasive. Then you can have a metal resurfacing and then you can have a hip replacement, so I guess this is the better of lesser evils.”

It is not a new issue but it hasn't bothered him to this extent until now, and Sanderson praised the 25-year-old’s response to the disappointing news.

“The level of stiffness hadn’t flagged up to this degree until this point in his career.

“There has always been hip stiffness there and an element of managing his load because he will just empty the tank and this time he was doing the same thing but just not recovering and wasn’t able to do it again and again.

“The red flags were out that maybe there was something deeper here and apparently there is.

“I’m sure there will be ebbs and flows over the next four or five months and I hope to be part of that journey with him as we get him back to where he needs to be.

“There was no chink in the invincible armour that is Tom Curry. It was like, ‘Right, let’s get it done. Let’s go’.”

Sale Sharks top the Gallagher Premiership table after six pulsating rounds of action with five wins and triumphed over derby rivals Newcastle Falcons in the battle of the north last time out.

In better news for England, Ben Earl should be fit in time for the 2024 Six Nations after undergoing surgery on a right knee injury he picked up in the warm-up ahead of Saracens’ thumping win over Harlequins.

An injury update issued by the club revealed Earl has already undergone surgery and is set for a January return.

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