Injury ends Latham's Australian rugby career

AFP ©

SYDNEY (AFP) - Wallabies fullback Chris Latham on Monday conceded his Australian rugby career was over since he will be forced to sit on the sidelines for the next three to four months with a shoulder injury.

The Britain-bound Latham faces surgery and lengthy recuperation after ripping the pectoral muscle from the bone of his right shoulder during a game against the Crusaders on Saturday night.

The 32-year-old said the injury effectively shut him out of selection for the Australian team before he leaves for Worcester on a three-year contract.

"I could probably make it back for one Test (but) there's no use for that," he said.

"They (Wallaby selectors) need to move on and obviously there will be people playing in between now and then and I really hope they get good form and they stay there and start performing.

"If that's the case, there's not much use wheeling me out again."

Latham said he was initially "quite filthy at the world" at his injury, particularly since it denies him the chance to play 100 super rugby games for the Queensland Reds, leaving him sitting on 99.

But he said his attitude had softened.

"I can't be filthy at anything. I've played over 100 games for Queensland, 70-odd Tests for Australia. It's a pretty privileged life.

"I don't at all feel ripped off. A little bit disappointed that it had to end this way."

The Queenslander will now end his career in England.

"It's something I'm looking forward to," he said. "My rugby's not over."