Lomu has emergency operation on intestine

Jonah Lomu is recovering in hospital after undergoing an emergency operation to repair a twisted intestine.

The New Zealand winger, who stayed in Britain after the All Blacks' end-of-year tour to do some promotional work for his sponsors, was taken to Macclesfield Hospital after complaining of stomach problems.

He said: "I was checking out of my hotel and suddenly had a terrible pain in my stomach. Later in the day I was in theatre and they found I had a twisted intestine. I have never felt such amazing pain but they seem to have fixed it.

"I am still under observation so I don't know how long I will be here, but, with all this care and attention, I am sure it won't be too long."

The 27-year-old played in all three of New Zealand's tour matches, a 31-28 defeat to England, a 20-20 draw against France and, most recently, a 43-17 victory against Wales. His participation in this tour had been in some doubt because of a knee injury, while his whole career looked in jeopardy when he was diagnosed with a rare and serious kidney disorder in 1997. That forced him to take nearly a year off from the game as he fought the illness.

New Zealand have named a 12-man squad for the Sevens tournaments in Dubai and South Africa. The team flies out tomorrow for the Dubai Sevens tournament on 6 and 7 December, with the South African tournament taking place on 13 and 14 December in the city of George.

NEW ZEALAND SEVENS SQUAD: C Baxter (Bay of Plenty), T Ioasa (Wellington), D Karauna (Waikato), R Kinikinilau (Wellington), L Messam (Bay of Plenty), I Tanivula (Auckland), J Tiatia (Canterbury), A Tuitivake (North Harbour), A Valence (Auckland), S Waldrom (Wellington), N Walker (Bay of Plenty), J Wilson (Auckland).