Turner to go under the knife

Sydney - Waratahs and Wallabies flyer Lachie Turner has put his fate in the hands of surgeons, hopeful he can retain his trademark speed and return to rugby in better shape than before his devastating hamstring tear.

Turner has hit the medical books since ripping a tendon off the bone in Friday's trial match against Samoa, and he's found varying degrees of success for rugby players returning from such trauma.

Disturbingly for Turner, who is almost certainly out for the full Super Rugby and international program this year, there is little precedent for how sprinters respond to the surgery.

However, the player tagged the ''fastest man in football'' is upbeat about a full recovery.

''We don't really know because no sprinter has really gone through this before,'' Turner said on Tuesday. He will have surgery on Wednesday.