A – Welsh rugby union coach Warren Gatland has fractured both his heels falling off a ladder at his Waihi Beach home on New Zealand’s Coromandel Peninsula.

The incident on Easter Monday leaves the double grand slam-winning coach in leg casts, delaying his return to Wales to prepare his team for a three-Test series in Australia in June.

The Wales Online website reports that he fell three metres while cleaning windows at his house.

He has undergone reconstruction surgery after sustaining multiple fractures to his right heel and a fracture in his left heel.

“We all wish Warren a speedy recovery from the injuries he has suffered in this extremely unfortunate accident,” Welsh Rugby Union chief executive Roger Lewis said in a statement.

In his absence, assistant coach Rob Howley will take charge of the Wales team management.