Toulouse's French fly-half Romain Ntamack (L) runs to evade Clermont's Samoan number eight Fritz Lee during the French Top14 rugby union match between Stade Toulousain Rugby (Toulouse) and ASM Clermont Auvergne at the Ernest-Wallon stadium in Toulouse, south-western France, on October 12, 2024. (Photo by Valentine CHAPUIS / AFP)
Toulouse: France are likely to be without Romain Ntamack for the start of their Autumn Tests after his club Toulouse said on Monday that the fly-half had a torn calf muscle.
Ntamack, who has not played for France since August 2023 when he suffered ruptured knee ligaments against Scotland which forced him to sit out the World Cup, hobbled off in the 39th minute of Toulouse's 48-14 win over Clermont on Saturday.
"He felt something in his calf, but it didn't seem to be anything joint-related or very serious," said assistant coach David Mele after the match.
Ntamack will nevertheless be out of action for almost a month, ruling him out of the opener against Japan at the Stade de France on November 7.
However, he could return to the France squad for the matches against New Zealand on November 16 and Argentina on November 22, also at the Stade de France.
