Mortlock out for three weeks
April 22, 2002

An ankle injury is expected to keep Wallaby centre Stirling Mortlock on the sidelines for up to three weeks.

Mortlock, one of the form players of the Super 12 series, strained ligaments in the ACT Brumbies' 19-11 loss to the New South Wales Waratahs on Saturday.

The big centre came off in the 22nd minute after trying to play on with his ankle heavily strapped.

Brumbies coach David Nucifora said the defending champions would re-assess their breakdown strategy after suffering a third straight loss, their worst run of form since the first three rounds of the 1999 tournament.

NSW effectively clinched their first Super 12 semi-final appearance as they moved to 34 points, a total which has always guaranteed a top four place in the six previous seasons.

While Nucifora was pleased the Brumbies dominated the set pieces, he felt they needed to re-evaluate their tactics in the open play.

"We've really struggled at the breakdown for three games in a row now and as a team, we're struggling to come to grips with some of the interpretations there," Nucifora said Sunday.

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