Jack Nowell’s torrid run with injury has continued with the England wing expected to be out for up to 10 weeks after coming off against France last weekend.

Nowell suffered a broken arm and will also undergo surgery on a thumb ligament, according to Exeter Chiefs director of rugby Rob Baxter.

Nowell, 28, suffered the injury in the 25th minute in Paris, falling awkwardly afer contesting a high ball in the air with France full-back Melvyn Jaminet following an up-and-under. He was replaced by Elliot Daly.

The latest injury blow for Nowell came after he was also forced off in the first half of England’s game against Italy after suffering a concussion. Nowell returned in time to play the full 80 minutes against Wales and Ireland. He came off the bench in England’s opening game of the tournament against Scotland, his first Test cap since the 2019 Rugby World Cup.

Speaking on the eve of the game with Italy, Nowell outlined the injury issues he had faced since playing for England in Japan. “For three years I didn’t play more than three games in a row,” Nowell told the Daily Mail. “Knee, ankle, appendix, toe ligaments, hamstring tears, quad tears, calf tears. It was a spiral of bad luck and different injuries and I made the mistake of rushing back.”

Nowell’s latest setback will hurt Exeter, with the 2020-21 Premiership champions currently in a tight battle for fourth place in the table, 20 points behind league leaders Leicester Tigers who they face on Sunday.

Analysis: Potential 10-week absence a major blow for play-off chasing Chiefs

Poor Jack Nowell. His rotten luck with injuries is becoming so unfair that he’ll soon be swapping injury recovery notes with Manu Tuilagi.

Nowell’s return in this Six Nations was a welcome sight given he hadn’t featured since the Rugby World Cup, and there were question marks over whether he would win another cap having been out of the fold for so long. 

He has always offered something different to England’s established first-choice wings, Jonny May and Anthony Watson, constantly roaming off his wing to create mismatches in midfield with Nowell almost operating as a fourth back-row. Of course he was actually in the back row against Ireland, after Charlie Ewels was sent off and England needed an extra body in the scrum.

This news will hit Exeter hard, with the club some way off guaranteeing a home semi-final with five rounds left to go in the season, eight points behind second-placed Saracens and an enormous 20 behind Leicester. Defeating Tigers on Sunday is paramount if Exeter want to have a chance of hosting another play-off side at Sandy Park. 

There is also the Champions Cup to consider, with Exeter playing Munster home and away in early April hoping to progress to the quarter-finals. Tom O’Flaherty and Olly Woodburn have been the preferred wing pairing in recent weeks in the Premiership and are likely to see plenty more game time.

A 10-week absence – Baxter noted that Nowell could be out between eight and 10 – would bring Nowell back just in time for the end of the regular season, meaning he would theoretically be available for England’s summer tour to Australia. Watson is continuing his recovery from a ruptured ACL, while May is still on his way back from a knee injury as well.

England head coach Eddie Jones has a number of young options available on the wing who have spent time in camp during the Six Nations without seeing the field: Ollie Hassell-Collins of London Irish, Louis Lynagh at Harlequins and Newcastle’s Adam Radwan. While Nowell could tour against the Wallabies, club and country may instead view the summer as the right time for Nowell to go through a full pre-season ahead of what could be a gruelling 2022-23 campaign ending with the Rugby World Cup in France. 

If Watson and May are not back in time (although May should be) and Nowell is rested, then England’s options out wide could look very different in Australia, not forgetting Joe Cokanasiga’s recent return either or Paolo Odowgu’s form, back from his own ACL injury having spent the entire Six Nations camp last year with England. Max Malins, dropped for the France game, may end up returning.

The sooner Nowell can be back healthy for both Exeter and England the better. But his potential absence gives Jones plenty to ponder as he begins planning to face the Wallabies.