Strettle blow rocks England

The jack-in-the-box Harlequin is due to have an operation today after being struck down by the footballers' curse of the broken metatarsal, in his case a cruel example of delayed effect considering the schoolboy years he spent with Manchester City.

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If it takes him as long to recover as Wayne Rooney, who suffered the injury at Euro 2004 and before last year's World Cup, Strettle will not play again until a fortnight after the World Cup Final on October 20.

He had been taking part in a routine non-contact sprint training drill at England's base in Bath, swerving in and out until he collapsed in a heap, a sudden burst of pain searing through his left foot.

His fifth metatarsal had snapped and the waves of anxiety will have caused a few ripples as far away as Cape Town, where the Springboks have been tracking the holders' every move, with Paris on September 14 uppermost in their planning.

Short of sending him to Lourdes for a miracle cure, Strettle will not be there to illuminate the tournament. Head coach Brian Ashton feared the worst last night as he awaited a specialist's report on the 23-year-old, who had been his first-choice right wing.

He said: "How the injury happened is a complete mystery because David was nowhere near anyone when it happened. It was just a case of running with the ball and changing direction. We won't know the extent of the damage until he's seen the specialist but obviously it doesn't look good."

With Mark Cueto earmarked as England's principal full back, groin strain permitting, the wing squadron is down to three - World Cup winners Jason Robinson and Josh Lewsey and Paul Sackey. Sackey has had his share of setbacks, most recently the knee operation which eliminated him from the entire Six Nations after a promising start against New Zealand and Argentina nine months ago.

Sackey said: "David is a very exciting player who has been playing really well. To lose him would be a massive blow, but if that happens we've just got to get on with it."

Sackey put his tightened defence to the test in Wasps' victory against Leicester in the European Cup Final last May and passed with flying colours, repeatedly bringing down Alex Tuilagi, the Tigers' Samoan super-heavyweight who had run amok in the Premiership all winter and who will be waiting to ambush England at the World Cup in Nantes next month.

Against France at Twickenham on Saturday, Sackey will have even more to play for. He said: "I shall be going out as if David is fully fit and nothing has changed. I have to show Brian that I am good enough to be in the squad. If I play well, I could cause a problem with his selection."

Lewsey, for so long the one constant in an ever-changing England team, is another bristling in anticipation of re-establishing himself after being dropped for the anti-climactic finale to the Six Nations in Cardiff, where the holders came unstuck during a run of consecutive away defeats which has since lengthened to eight.

Lewsey said: "What's happened to David is very regrettable and I am gutted for him. Not only is he a great lad who's had a fantastic season, he brings a winning mentality to the squad - always positive in everything he does and full of confidence. Hopefully, he will still have two or three World Cups in him."

Lewsey steps on to the left wing aiming to remind the world that he has recaptured the touch which made him an indisposable member of the team wherever they chose to pick him - full back, wing, centre or, on one occasion in the early days, fly half.

"The last couple of years have been pretty frustrating," he said. "I want to enjoy my rugby and play it with a smile on my face. I'm raring to go."

With Mathew Tait able to cover wing and full back as well as his favoured position of outside centre, Ashton may well decide he has sufficient at his disposal to avoid sending for a second reinforcement following Richard Wigglesworth's arrival from Sale as scrum half cover for Peter Richards, laid low by a back problem.

Despite the exclusion of Ben Cohen, Iain Balshaw, James Simpson-Daniel, Tom Voyce and Tom Varndell, England would have had to lose another wing before Tuesday's deadline had Strettle stayed in one piece.

As England prepare today to acknowledge that the injured Mike Tindall is out of their plans, the Springboks have learned that Pierre Spies, the flanker who left serious dents in England at Loftus Versveld in the 55-22 mauling in June, is set to make the World Cup after all despite having been ruled out last week because of blood clots on the lung.

Further tests suggest he will be given the all-clear to reclaim his place at the expense of the third hooker, Bismarck du Plessis.