More bad luck for “frustrated” Mack Hansen as Connacht issue update
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Sidelined.
Mack Hansen has had no luck when it comes to his fitness over the last few months.
The Connacht and Ireland star missed out on the Lions Test series over the summer with an injury, after impressing in the warm-up games.
He then returned to action for Connacht at the beginning of the season before injuring himself again, and it now looks like he’s set for another extended spell on the sidelines.
Hansen made his return to action for Ireland against Australia, scoring a hat-trick, before retaining his place at fullback against South Africa on Saturday.
But he was forced off with less than 20 minutes to go, and now Connacht have no timeline for his return as they look to try and get his body right, rather than rush him back.
“He’s disappointed with the setback but understands we can only do what we can do so we’ll wait,” Connacht coach Rod Seib told RTÉ Sport.
“We’ll be patient knowing that this time of the year we’re quite fortunate to have so many healthy bodies so we’ve certainly got good people in our back three.
“In saying that, he’ll add value when he does return. You don’t want to have a patchy season of in and out all the time and trying to balance his Ireland commitments with Connacht’s.
“It’s something that’s to the forefront of our mind so we want to make sure he has a good opportunity to be at his best for Ireland but also at his best for us.
“It will be a bit of a balancing act but hopefully he’ll be on the selection table soon.”
Seib added that Hansen’s rugby IQ is “first class” and that he has become “frustrated” after a series of unfortunate setbacks.
“He’s incredibly important, just to have him in the team room, to have him adding value to team meetings, his rugby IQ is first class,” Seib added.
“We really value that side of it.
“He’s been frustrated because he hasn’t had a run of games.
“I know prior to the weekend he was keen to come back to Connacht and get straight back in.
“He didn’t want to have a break, he was keen to get a run of games under his belt.”
