Rugby-Australia's Slipper faces lengthy lay off with Achilles injury

Australia prop James Slipper faces a lengthy lay off after rupturing an Achilles tendon in Super Rugby in South Africa at the weekend, officials confirmed on Monday.

Slipper, captain of the Queensland Reds, has headed back to Brisbane from Johannesburg after being hurt in his side's 44-14 loss to the Lions at Ellis Park on Saturday.

The 26-year-old, who played for the Wallabies at the last two Rugby World Cups, is likely to miss the rest of the Super Rugby season as well as Australia's participation in the Rugby Championship.

"It's obviously really disappointing for James to suffer such a serious injury this early in the season," coach Nick Stiles told reporters.

Prop Phil Kile will join the Reds squad as Slipper's replacement for Saturday's match against the Jaguares in Buenos Aires while Lachlan Maranta has also flown to Argentina as fly half Quade Cooper has gone home in anticipation of a suspension after being sent off for a high tackle early in the second half of Saturday's match.

(This article has not been edited by DNA's editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)