Joint Statement From Professors Angus Wallace and Christopher G Moran on 16 June 2006

Professor Wallace & Professor Moran were invited by the England FA to provide an expert medical opinion on the fitness of Wayne Rooney to play in the World Cup.

Both Consultants work at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, Queen’s Medical Centre Campus (QMC) and both are Professors appointed by the University of Nottingham. QMC is the biggest trauma centre in England and treats over 16,000 fractures per year.

In the past 18 months 751 metatarsal fractures have been treated by the medical team at QMC. Seventy of these were due to sports with 50 of these related to football.

Professor Wallace was invited because of his extensive knowledge of both Orthopaedic surgery and Sports Medicine – he has been a Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon for 22 years working as a Consultant Trauma Surgeon from 1984 to 1996.

In addition he has been actively involved in sports medicine for over 16 years and has an in-depth understanding of rehabilitation and fitness loss in relation to sportsmen.

Professor Moran is a full time Trauma Surgeon, has been a Consultant for 15 years and has an expert knowledge of fracture management and rehabilitation which he teaches both nationally and internationally.

Wayne Rooney sustained a fracture of his fourth metatarsal on 29 April 2006.

Professor Wallace received the original scans of Wayne’s foot on 5 June 2006. Professors Wallace and Moran consulted further with their colleagues in Nottingham - Dr Robert Kerslake (Radiologist - X-ray doctor), Mr Sunil Dhar, Miss Brigitte Scammell and Mr Andrew Taylor (Orthopaedic Foot Surgeons) and Professor Mark Batt, Professor of Sports Medicine.

The Nottingham Team agreed that, depending on Wayne’s clinical examination on Wednesday 7 June, he could be fit to play by 20 June - the Sweden Group Match. The fractures had involved the base of the fourth metatarsal bone and the under-surface of another small bone (the Lateral Cuneiform bone).

Prof Moran and Wallace have been given permission by Wayne to discuss his injury. The Professors were able to work out how the fracture had occurred and that in addition to the fractures there was also some ligament stretching.

We were able to confirm that this fracture was quite different from the typical Metatarsal shaft fracture, but was a fracture involving the spongy (cancellous) bone at the base of the metatarsal. This bone heals approximately three times more quickly than the hard (cortical) bone of the metatarsal shaft. This was not a stress fracture, which often take longer to heal.

We have been impressed with the careful management of Wayne’s foot injury by the Manchester Medical Team which had managed him in a totally expert manner. Wayne had discomfort in his foot for only five days and has now been pain free for six weeks. His rehabilitation programme was started after 48 hours, initially by the Manchester United Medical Team and later by the England Medical Team.

Dr Leif Sward, the England Team doctor contacted us earlier this week to advise us that Wayne had, in his opinion, achieved full fitness and should be able to play in the Trinidad and Tobago Group Match on 15 June 2006.

At his request we flew to Germany on Wednesday and carried out a very careful assessment of Wayne yesterday (15 June).

We both recognised that this was a week earlier than we had anticipated declaring him fit but it is now our independent opinion that Wayne has made a full recovery from his injury and we declared him fit to play in the World Cup as from 15 June.

Professor W Angus Wallace
Professor Christopher G Moran