Dombrandt tears ACL on England XV duty to miss most of Harlequins' 2026/27 season

Harlequins captain Alex Dombrandt faces surgery and an extended spell on the sidelines after tearing his ACL during England XV’s match against France XV in Vannes on Friday night, the Premiership club confirmed. The 29-year-old No.8 is expected to miss a significant portion of the 2026/27 season.

Dombrandt had been named in England’s training squad for the upcoming Nations Championship, but the injury forced his omission from the final 36-player group. He will be assessed by a specialist in the coming days before undergoing surgery and beginning rehabilitation with Harlequins’ medical team.

The timing is a particularly cruel blow for a player who had just enjoyed one of his finest individual campaigns. Dombrandt scored 10 tries in 21 appearances last season — a return that earned him a clean sweep of awards at the club’s end-of-season dinner — and had re-established himself in England’s senior reckoning after his last cap came 12 months ago against the USA.

“Everyone at the club sends their very best wishes to Alex and will be doing everything to support him throughout each step of his recovery,” Harlequins said in a statement.

Dombrandt’s absence opens the door for Exeter’s uncapped No.8 Greg Fisilau, who will now compete with Ben Earl and Henry Pollock for a place at the back of England’s pack. Pollock was named Player of the Match in Saturday’s Premiership Final.

Fisilau is one of five uncapped players in the squad alongside Noah Caluori, Benhard Janse van Rensburg, George Kloska, and Vilikesa Sela. The group will train at England’s Performance Centre at Pennyhill Park until Wednesday.