Rugby-All Blacks centre Tupaea sidelined for nine months

FILE PHOTO: Rugby Union - Autumn International - Italy v New Zealand - Stadio Olimpico, Rome, Italy - November 6, 2021 New Zealand's Quinn Tupaea in action with Italy's Juan Ignacio Brex REUTERS/Guglielmo Mangiapane/File Photo

(Reuters) - New Zealand centre Quinn Tupaea will sidelined for nine months by the knee injury he sustained during a clear-out by Australia's Darcy Swain in Melbourne earlier this month that incenesd the All Blacks.

The team said on Thursday that further scans on the anterior cruciate ligament injury revealed "more extensive damage" that would require surgery, extending his period on the sidelines by six months.