Moody Eyes Up Autumn Tests After Retina Scare

Lewis Moody revealed last night that he lost the vision in his left eye for a day after an injury last week against Gloucester has made it a race against time to be fit to lead England against New Zealand in four weeks' time.

In the week in which Llanelli's Gavin Quinnell lost his battle to save his sight in his left eye after surgery following a game against Cross Keys which has led to a formal complaint being lodged by the Scarlets, Moody is confident that he will regain full fitness in time to captain England at Twickenham.

But the man who Sportsvibe understands will retain the England captain's armband after his heroics last June in Australia was deeply concerned last Sunday and Monday after losing virtually all of his sight in his left eye following an accidental collision with Gloucester's Charlie Sharples as Bath went down at the Rec. 

Even now he has just 50% vision in the injured eye due to a badly bruised retina but this is improving and, according to Moody, who joined Bath during the summer after 14 years' service at Leicester, the prognosis is good.

"Ideally I'd like to be back for the game away at Leicester on October 24th for obvious reasons," said the openside, whom missed today's narrow home defeat to Biarritz in the Heineken Cup. "I think I have a chance. If not then I'll have to ask Martin Johnson and England permission to get a game, or at least a half, for Bath against Harlequins the following Sunday, on October 31st.

"Of course Bath would have to select me and England would have to allow me to play considering it is a week before the All Blacks game and all the other England players will be rested from club rugby."

In the week since the freak injury - a first for a man who has experienced just about every other rugby-related injury imaginable - Moody's spirits have risen appreciably from the first 24 hours when his left side was, literally, in the dark.

"When I first sat up on the grass I had next to no vision in my left eye," he explained. "I was shocked, to say the least, because I'd never had such an experience before in my whole career.

"I wanted to get on with the game but the doctor insisted that I had to go off and he was right, of course. The concern was that I'd detached my retina which would have meant surgery and no chance of playing in the autumn tests.

"Instead, after having a scan at the Bristol Eye Hospital during the week, it appears that I bruised the internal working of the eye, especially the retina.

"That evening I continued to have no vision in that eye which was very surreal. At best, if someone waved their hand in front of me, I could see a feint shadow. I'd put my vision then at less than 10%. Luckily it's got better as each day has passed and now I'd say I"m up to 50%. By the end of next week I"m expecting to have full vision and intend to start full training again.

"It's hardly ideal, both from my career at Bath which has only just got started, nor for England, where I would have liked more game time before the possibility of taking on New Zealand, but I am very confident I will be right and ready for Twickenham on November 6th."

Besides, as Moody is the first to acknowledge, it could have been a great deal worse. "When I see what's happened to Gavin Quinnell I guess I should count myself lucky," he added. "I don't know the ins and outs of what exactly happened to Gavin but it's a tragedy and my heart goes out to him and his family.

"It also puts what happened to me in perspective. I felt pretty hard done by at first and sorry for myself knowing that I'd miss three weeks of rugby just before the autumn internationals and with important Heineken Cup games for Bath, but now I realise it could have been so much worse.

"I don't know whether I escaped something worse by a fraction of a millimetre or not, but I am grateful that I am recovering well and there seems to be no likelihood of any lasting damage."

England begin their autumn campaign against New Zealand on November 6th, followed by games against Australia, Samoa and South Africa on the following three Saturdays. They will be needing Moody's leadership and back row nous for sure next month at headquarters.