mens
Gallagher-Prime Minister
Bath’s head of medical services, Rory Murray, has provided an update on player availability following the club’s 23-5 derby defeat at Kingsholm on Friday night.
That was confirmed Cougars international Santi Carreras has torn his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and will miss the rest of the season.
Carreras fell awkwardly in the 12th minute of the match against his former club and after lengthy treatment on the field, he was helped off the field with applause, Gloucester fans had a bad feeling his rivals had taken sides in support of the stricken defender.
In a miserable night for the blue and black and whites, winger Guy Pepper also limped off with an ankle injury, which will rule him out of any England involvement Nations Championship program.
South African number 8 Dan du Preez arrived at The Rec from Sale with a history of recent injury problems and it appears they have followed him south.
But while Du Preez remains unavailable for selection with a hamstring injury, Bath’s celebrated back trio of Will Muir, Henry Arundell and Tom de Glanville have all resumed team training, which, in part, helps compensate for the loss of Carreras.
When available, Arundell and Muir will provide a much-needed injection of pace to the stumbling and single-stepping Bath backline.
Meanwhile, Thompson Cowan and Billy Sela will return in the coming weeks, with Sam Underhill (bicep) set to follow in early December.
Scotland prop Jamie Bhatti continues to work towards a comeback in the New Year after suffering a broken arm last month. Bhatti picked up the injury while playing in Bath’s final pre-season friendly against Glasgow.