Taulupe Faletau suffers injury setback on Cardiff comeback

Wales number eight Taulupe Faletau faced another setback in his return to rugby after a six-month injury lay-off. Faletau, who suffered a broken arm during Wales’ World Cup victory against Georgia in October 2023, missed the Six Nations due to a calf injury. Despite his efforts to make a comeback, Faletau was forced off the field in the 30th minute during Cardiff’s recent match against Ulster in the United Rugby Championship.

Cardiff head coach Matt Sherratt expressed concern over Faletau’s injury, stating, “He is being assessed after having a knock on his shoulder and we don’t know the extent of the injury yet.” Sherratt added, “Fingers crossed, it’s not too bad because he’s put a huge amount of effort in over the last six or seven months to come back.”

In addition to Faletau, Cardiff’s Wales full-back Cameron Winnett was also forced off early in the game. The match was marred by controversial calls, with Cardiff feeling hard done by a missed knock-on in the build-up to Ulster’s try. Sherratt voiced his frustration, saying, “What we have struggled with tonight was there was a clear knock-on in the build-up to their try from the line-out. There is no doubt about it.”

Despite the disappointing result, Sherratt remained optimistic about his team’s performance, stating, “We deserved more from the game. When the dust settles, we need to look at things we can do better. We need to be able to put more pressure on the opposition and score more points.” Cardiff’s loss marked their 10th defeat in 14 league games this season, with Sherratt emphasizing the need for improvement moving forward.