ACT Brumbies coach Stephen Larkham has called for a crackdown on hip-drop tackles after the club fell victim to the dangerous act for the second-straight week.
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Hooker Lachlan Lonergan was carried from the field on a stretcher during Saturday night's tense 20-19 victory over the Queensland Reds after falling in an awkward tackle by Tate McDermott.
The Wallaby underwent surgery to repair a fractured and dislocated ankle in Brisbane on Sunday morning and is facing four to five months on the sidelines.
The incident came just a week after Brumbies Super W star Jay Huriwai suffered a fractured leg in a similar tackle in her side's win over the Melbourne Rebels.
While the NRL and NFL have launched crackdowns on hip drop tackles, the technique remains legal in rugby union. As a result, McDermott is unlikely to be cited for the incident.
Larkham said the fact two players have suffered serious injuries in successive weeks was enough to prove rugby authorities must outlaw the dangerous tackle.
"There's your evidence that we need to take it seriously and discourage it," Larkham said.
"It's a dangerous tackle, the mechanism is dangerous for the ball carrier. It's rife in the NFL and they've done something about it. If we've got an issue with it, we need to get rid of it from the game straight away."
Lonergan is expected to return to the ACT in the coming days and will watch on as his teammates prepare for a showdown with the NSW Waratahs at Canberra Stadium on Saturday night.
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Billy Pollard is set to start at hooker, with Connal McInerney and Liam Bowron in the mix for the bench spot.
The nature of rugby union suggests it will not be easy to outlaw hip drop tackles, but the NRL has largely eradicated the act after overcoming early teething issues.
Dual-code international Mat Rogers suffered a similar injury during his career and declared player safety should be the priority.
Rogers was sitting metres away from Lonergan when he suffered the injury and said union officials must follow the NRL's lead.
"It's an awful tackle," he said. "I blew my ankle out at the start of the 2004 season in a hip drop. I needed surgery and missed the whole season.
"The NFL just banned it, the NRL banned it and if you've lost the tackle, the attacker should get the advantage and shouldn't be put at risk. It might be harder to police [in union] but you don't want to see players go down with injuries like that from a hip drop."