Lewsey out of rugby final with injury

Winger Josh Lewsey has been ruled out of the World Cup final with a hamstring tear, England officials said yesterday. Lewsey, who played in the 2003 final victory over Australia, was forced off with the injury near the end of the first half of...

Winger Josh Lewsey has been ruled out of the World Cup final with a hamstring tear, England officials said yesterday. Lewsey, who played in the 2003 final victory over Australia, was forced off with the injury near the end of the first half of Saturday's 14-9 semi-final win over France.

The 30-year-old, who scored the only try of the game after less than two minutes, was ruled out of the final against South Africa after his scan revealed a grade one tear.

After Lewsey went off against France, Mathew Tait switched to the wing with Dan Hipkiss coming on at outside centre.

Both players performed well but with South Africa carrying a high-paced threat on both flanks through JP Pietersen and eight-try Bryan Habana, coach Brian Ashton knows his selection in that area is vital.

Sign up to our free newsletters

Get the best updates straight to your inbox:

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.