Bath Rugby’s prop Will Stuart is expected to miss the remainder of the club’s Investec Champions Cup campaign following a suspected rupture of his Achilles tendon during their match against Munster.
The injury occurred in the 47th minute after a scrum collapsed, forcing Stuart off the field as he struggled to stand. His condition is a major concern not only for Bath but also for England’s head coach Steve Borthwick, who is finalizing plans for the 2026 Six Nations campaign.
Bath’s head of rugby, Johann van Graan, commented on Stuart’s injury: “No, he’s not in a good way. It looks like it’s his Achilles. I’m no medical expert, but he couldn’t even stand up when he got pulled off the field. I’ll receive an update later, but it looks very serious.”
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Despite the setback, van Graan was pleased with Bath’s commanding 40-14 victory over Munster. The team established a strong 28-0 lead early on despite challenging wet conditions that made ball handling difficult.
“It’s a very good win, five points, and they didn’t get any league points,” van Graan said. “I think that’s one of our better starts, scoring four tries in just 18 minutes. At half-time, it was vital to maintain our lead and we controlled the second half 5-0.”
Van Graan praised the team’s adaptability and dominance in key areas, particularly the maul and scrum, which laid the foundation for victory. “We had ascendancy in the scrum and were dominant in the maul. But we respect Munster and knew they would keep coming. We managed the game tactically well and stuck to our plan.”
Munster captain Tadhg Beirne acknowledged the team’s early struggles, taking responsibility for lost line-outs that allowed Bath’s early advantage. “It was a silly error on my part. I lost one and then it was compounded with a penalty into the corner. My yellow card was punished severely during that first 20 minutes.”
Beirne reflected positively on the team’s response after the difficult start: “We’ll move on for next week, but I thought the fight after was more like the Munster we know.”
Munster’s head of rugby Clayton McMillan stressed the importance of discipline and execution. “We are a better side than what we showed in the first 20 minutes, especially against such quality opponents. Early line-out errors lifted their pressure, making a comeback very tough.”
Despite the loss, McMillan found encouraging signs: “There were positives. Against one of Europe’s top teams, we kept the score close for a good 60 minutes. But we don’t want to be complacent about that.”