England rugby officials have been forced to make a change to their 42-strong squad just one day after arriving in South Africa for a three-Test, five-match tour.
A knee injury has ruled out Wasps lock Joe Launchbury and his place will be filled by uncapped flank Jamie Gibson from London Irish, coach Stuart Lancaster said on Friday in this Indian Ocean city.
“Joe got a knock in training before we left England and we had him assessed here and he is not going to be able to continue the tour,” Lancaster told a media conference.
Samoa-born back Manu Tuilagi sat out the first training session of the tour with a foot injury, but the coach believes the likely first-choice inside centre will recover.
Lancaster, who took over from Martin Johnson after England made a last-eight exit from the 2011 World Cup in New Zealand, was thrilled by the intensity and liveliness of his squad during their initial training session.
“I thought there would be some tiredness given that we stepped off a plane yesterday, but it was a great session with no signs of weariness,” said the 42-year-old coach.
England play Tests on June 9 in Durban, on June 16 in Johannesburg, and on June 23 in Port Elizabeth, plus two mid-week matches against South African Barbarians sides composed of second-tier Currie Cup players.