48 hours: Poms' Cup hopes on the Wayne after injury jinx

1) Wayne Rooney breaks a foot bone.
In modern sporting medic-lingo, all of England and their many football supporters around the world will be suffering from a grade one broken heart.

Even if Rooney makes it on to the field during the World Cup in Germany, he won't be at his peak. Then again, he is Wayne Rooney - no ordinary mortal.

The injury has haunting similarities to that suffered by former English footy favourite David Beckham prior to the last World Cup. England without Rooney will be England without much of a World Cup chance - and the British tabloids would be lost during the tournament as well (just kidding - the British tabloids are never lost).

2) Brumbies injuries
Deserves a mention on two fronts. First, the rugby tide looks to be turning the Waratahs' way across the Ditch and the Canberra mob are likely to struggle even further in the finals if Stirling Mortlock succumbs again to a shoulder problem.

The subject also deserves noting for the sheer consistency - something that coaches are always searching for - from Mortlock and fellow crock Gene Fairbanks in their post-match interviews.

Mortlock said: "I'd say it's a grade one AC joint [injury] similar to last time ... at the moment, it's quite painful so it's a bit upsetting really."

Fairbanks, who suffered a recurrence of a knee injury, said: "I'd say it's probably a grade one medial."

How kind of the players to specify and grade their ailments for us. Puts old rugby warhorses, who were prone to describing things like a broken leg as a "bit of a knock", to shame.

3) Chelsea win the English Premiership
The result certainly isn't an upset. Everyone knew Chelsea would win the title months ago.

But apart from Chelsea fans, everyone else seems upset that Chelsea keep winning the title. Bought title, dodgy Russian cash, boring football, flashy manager and so on and so forth.

English malcontents should instead look on the bright side.

After all, there were actually three English players - John Terry, Joe Cole and Frank Lampard - in the team. That's way above the quota these days. Now there's something to celebrate.

4) The Super 14: Blues
They won. Enough said.

5) The Crusaders
They lost. Enough said. (Although, if they were ever going to lose a game, it wasn't bad timing a few weeks out from the finals. Long winning streaks can lull teams into bad ways.)

6) The Waratahs
It was positively mortifying to watch the flash-harry of Southern Hemisphere rugby dealing to the Highlanders in the sort of Dunedin weather in which the tradition and folklore of New Zealand rugby have been founded. In these sort of conditions, smart-alec accountants and architects from Sydney should flounder in soggy disgrace, catch mass influenza, and beat each other up on the plane trip home. What the heck is going on in the rugby world? The Waratahs appear to have undergone a worrying personality transplant. This was like a stab to the very heart of our great and glorious national game. Upset isn't the word for it. It's enough to make a bloke take up skateboarding. No wonder Anton Oliver got uppity.

7) Wayne Rooney
Deserves another mention. What a disaster. This can't be happening ...

8) Luiz Felipe Scolari
The Brazilian became afraid, very afraid, of English media scrutiny and withdrew from a race he had won to succeed English manager Sven-Goran Eriksson. The decision might cost Scolari cash but will add years to his life.

9) Ricki Herbert/Scott Gemmill
Anyone trying to work out what role the All Whites' coach will have at the Knights wouldn't merely be upset, they'd be absolutely beside themselves with frustration. Ditto with Gemmill and whether he has signed for the Knights. It depends on which reports you believe. But Gemmill has a very nice line in honesty, which is always to be encouraged.

" ... I've got it all to prove when I go because no other teams would give me [a] contract," the former top English club footballer told a Sunday newspaper. Bravo. More of that please.

10) The Sydney Roosters
 No Matt Bowen this time. The flighty Roosters didn't make the Cowboys look ordinary. The Cowboys did that to themselves. But still, a boilover in Townsville.

11) Kiwi David Solomona
Will miss Friday's league test against Australia because the Brits haven't returned his passport in time. Shontayne Hape is also out, because according to a report "his partner is in the UK". International league sure is a class act. This double blow is all the more upsetting because, as hard as you might try, it's impossible to blame Aussie skulduggery for either defection.

12) Kiwi Captain Ruben Wiki
He injured a hamstring in the final Warriors' training run before their rugged defeat against the Bulldogs yesterday. Wiki sure was missed although it did remove the chance of him being called to the judiciary before the Brisbane test. and that's always a chance with Mr Wiki. Can the kava bowl perform another miracle? Stay tuned.

High
Stephen Fleming's third double century in tests. The elegant skipper has finally found a batting place of his own in New Zealand cricket history.

Low
Wayne Rooney's foot injury. A bitter blow so close to the World Cup for English fans and football fans in general.