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ESPN staff
Wallabies skipper Michael Hooper has been ruled out of his side’s season finale in Cardiff after suffering a foot injury in Saturday’s loss to England.
Hooper left the field in the 54th minute of the 32-15 loss at Twickenham, before scans on Monday confirmed the flanker had suffered a grade two mid-foot sprain.
It means the skipper will not feature in the Wallabies’ final Test of the year against Wales at the Principality Stadium this weekend.
Hooper’s diagnosis came just a few hours after he was named as one of four nominees for World Rugby’s Player of the Year alongside Japan-based centre and Wallabies teammate Samu Kerevi.
Dave Rennie and Andrew Kellaway were also nominated for Coach of the Year and Breakthrough Player of the Year respectively.
The Wallabies have dropped their last two Tests with the defeat by England coming after they had been beaten 15-13 by Scotland a week earlier.
Both Nic White and James O’Connor spent time as captain after Hooper left the field on Saturday night, with the scrum-half the likely option to replace Hooper as skipper this weekend.
The Wallabies do not have another specialist openside flanker on tour having left young Reds No. 7 Fraser McReight at home. Brumbies back-rower Pete Samu, who has proven to be an excellent impact player of the bench, looms as the most likely replacement for Hooper in Cardiff.