THE premature departure from the Lions tour of Lawrence Dallaglio with a broken right ankle is a substantial blow to the squad’s hopes of winning the series with New Zealand but, if so influential a player is to go — and this is not intended to be unsympathetic — it is better that he goes early.

That way his colleagues can adjust to the loss and, as Sir Clive Woodward has been saying since his No 8 was taken off on a stretcher at Rotorua on Saturday, they can move on. Dallaglio is not the first player to find his tour cut short almost from the word go but he may well be the most significant.

They are not short of No 8s in the party, hence the reason why Simon Easterby, the Llanelli Scarlets flanker, was snatched off Ireland’s flight from Shannon to Japan on Saturday to replace Dallaglio, although individuals such as Jason White, of Scotland, who is recovering from a thumb injury, and Ryan Jones, of Wales, might well be disappointed. Martin Corry, who leads the Lions against Taranaki on Wednesday, Michael Owen and Simon Taylor are all at home with the position while Easterby can play on either side of the scrum.

But Dallaglio has a presence, an authority, which few can match on or off the field. Neil Back and Richard Hill, his former England colleagues, are equally experienced but they do not enjoy quite the same iconic quality. Of the three No 8s remaining in the party, the most alike in combative play is Corry, the quickest is Taylor — who has yet to be involved because of his hamstring strain — and the most perceptive is Owen, but his experience is relatively limited.

Corry did an excellent job of steadying the ship against Bay of Plenty after replacing Dallaglio in the 25th minute. The injury occurred when Dallaglio went in to help Brian O’Driscoll in a tackle and his face creased with pain as he fell awkwardly, provoking a seven-minute delay while he received treatment on the pitch.

This is one of the most savage disappointments of Dallaglio’s long career. Since standing down from England duty last September, he has nourished through the domestic season the hope that he could make one last tour with the Lions, after damaged knee ligaments ended his tour to Australia in 2001 having made only two appearances.

He saw a specialist yesterday afternoon after being driven back to Auckland from Rotorua and underwent an operation by two of New Zealand’s leading orthopaedic surgeons. His ankle had been dislocated but James Robson, the Lions doctor, was able to put it back on the field of play. The surgery involved internal fixation to stabilise the fracture and Dallaglio is expected to return home in 10 to 14 days.

“I’m obviously very disappointed,” Dallaglio said, “but I’ve been around long enough to know that injuries are part of the game and no matter how difficult it is, you have to be philosophical.”

It may be as much as six months before he plays again and it is a measure of the respect in which he is held that his opponents expressed disappointment. “It’s robbed the tour of a personality, it’s robbed the tour of a great player,” Steve Hansen, New Zealand’s assistant coach, said.

Justin Marshall, New Zealand’s most-capped scrum half who was named in the squad to play Fiji this week, said: “When I saw it . . . I felt like sending the guy a text message saying, ‘Look, I really feel for what’s happened to you’. Regardless of the fact he was going to be a menace to us . . . it’s a shame that he’ s missing from the tour.”

Woodward, the Lions head coach, said: “Since we both stepped out of the England scene last September, all we have talked about is the Lions and I have never seen him in better shape, physically or mentally. He’s a world-class player and clearly we will miss him.”

Dallaglio was the pack leader against Bay of Plenty, a role taken over by Paul O’Connell to considerable effect once the Lions had regained the composure they clearly lost with Dallaglio’s departure.

His club, London Wasps, have been English champions in three successive seasons under his captaincy, but they will not see him in action until midway through next season. He will be 33 in August and there are not many more miles under his belt, though one ambition may be to equal or surpass Leicester’s record of four successive Premiership titles. That, though, will be far from his thoughts as he begins his recovery.