The hooker faces an “extended period” on the sidelines following a “cardiac event”, his club announced in a statement
Singleton (front) faces an “extended period” on the sidelines
England international Jack Singleton has been stepped down from rugby and will spent an “extended period” on the sidelines due to a heart issue, his club Gloucester have announced.
The 29-year-old hooker, who has four international caps, has made 75 appearances for the Cherry and Whites since joining them from Saracens in 2020. He started for George Skivington’s side in their opening PREM Rugby Cup game against Exeter last month but will be out of action for the foreseeable future following a “cardiac event”.
In a statement issued on Friday, the club said: “Gloucester Rugby can sadly confirm that hooker Jack Singleton will not feature for an extended period of time.
“Following a cardiac event in September, Jack has been undergoing a comprehensive period of medical testing in consultation with cardiac specialists. Jack will continue to receive full support from the Gloucester Rugby medical team.”
Singleton, who started his professional career with Worcester Warriors and also played for Toulon on loan during the 2023/24 campaign, is a former U20s world champion and featured at the 2019 Rugby World Cup after winning his first senior cap against Wales in a tournament warm-up match.
He is one of 16 players now unavailable to Skivington and Gloucester, with several key men also out of action for the PREM Rugby side due to injury. Sign up to Inside Welsh rugby on Substack to get exclusive news stories and insight from behind the scenes in Welsh rugby.
The hooker experienced a ‘cardiac event’ in September
They include Wales international Josh Hathaway, who is still recovering from an ankle injury he picked up during pre-season, according to GloucestershireLive. However, he is expected to return “in the coming weeks”.
Club vice-captain Arthur Clark has undergone surgery on a foot injury sustained during training, while former skipper Lewis Ludlow is recovering from a thumb injury, which also saw him go under the knife.
Back-rower Jack Clement has also begun his rehabilitation after undergoing successful surgery on an ankle injury he suffered during Gloucester’s PREM Rugby opener against Sale Sharks, while lock Danny Eite is recovering from an ACL injury he sustained last season.
Prop Jamal Ford-Robinson is reportedly making “encouraging progress” in his recovery from knee surgery he had over the summer, while his fellow front-rower Val Rapava-Ruskin is managing recurring knee issue. Join WalesOnline Rugby’s WhatsApp Channel here to get the breaking news sent straight to your phone for free
Full-back Ben Redshaw has returned to light training after breaking his ankle while playing for England U20s last season, while new signing Rob Russell is expected to return in a matter of weeks after suffering a calf injury in pre-season.
Wales centre Max Llewellyn has also picked up a short-term injury, as have Olly Allport, George Barton, Will Butler, Kirill Gototvsev and George Knowles.
Addressing the injury crisis this week, Singleton said: “We’re getting tested earlier than I would have liked or thought possible but it is what it is, you’ve got to ride the storm.
“We’ve built the squad to hopefully be able to cover these sort of things,” he added. “I didn’t think we’d be covering the missing injured players in week two or week one even, but it’s just going to get tested.
“Hopefully as the lads drip back in, we’re going to have exposed all our new lads to a lot of rugby and hopefully we can get stronger as the season goes on, but in the here and now we’ve obviously got a few fix-ups for next week.”