George Smith consoles David Pocock on Saturday night. Photo: Graham Tidy
ACT Brumbies flanker David Pocock will be sidelined for the rest of the year after undergoing a traditional knee reconstruction in Brisbane on Thursday night.
The Wallabies captain had a two-hour procedure to repair the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee, damaged in last week's win against the NSW Waratahs.
Pocock is expected to be sidelined for up to nine months as he completes his rehabilitation, ruling him out of the marquee series with the British and Irish Lions.
"I'm pleased to have the surgery out of the way," Pocock said on Friday.
"Now I need to rest up and get myself ready to start the rehabilitation process.
''The key thing is that I'm patient and don't try to rush back.''
The reconstruction was overseen by noted surgeon Peter Myers, who is well known to the rugby community having previously operated on a number of high-profile players.
Myers has also worked with the Brisbane Broncos, the Queensland Reds and the Wallabies.
It is understood that the radical LARS surgery wasn't considered in order to protect Pocock's longevity in the game.
The 24-year-old is regarded as one of the premier openside flankers in the world and has more than 40 caps for the Wallabies. He was the Brumbies' marquee signing for this season before leaving the field midway through the first half of the 35-6 win over the Waratahs last weekend.
The LARS procedure involves synthetic fibres being used rather than a muscle graft to reconstruct the torn ACL.
Players can be back on the ground within three months.
Brumbies hooker Josh Mann-Rea elected to undergo the LARS surgery to repair his ruptured ACL as the 32-year-old chases his first taste of Super Rugby.
The procedure is more common among AFL players, who have fewer collisions than their rugby union counterparts. Sydney Swan Nick Malceski has had two LARS operations. Sydney premiership defender Alex Johnson, 21, is considering going down that path after rupturing his ACL last weekend in a NAB Cup game.
Pocock will remain in Brisbane to recover from the surgery until next week before returning to Canberra.
"If that means season over, in terms of playing any more rugby this year, then so be it,'' Pocock said.
''Once I get into the rehabilitation, we'll see how it goes."
Brumbies and Wallabies great George Smith will take Pocock's place in the No. 7 jersey for Sunday morning's match with the Sharks in Durban.
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