Bristol Bears face Leicester Tigers at Mattioli Woods Welford Road on Saturday in Round Eight of the 2024/25 Gallagher Premiership
Bristol Bears are set to be bolstered by the return of key playmaker AJ MacGinty for Saturday’s trip to Welford Road to face Leicester Tigers in Round Eight of the 2024/25 Gallagher Premiership.
The 34-year-old USA international fly-half suffered a rib injury in just the fifth minute of the Bears’ opening Champions Cup game two weeks ago, with the English side going down 35-12 at home to Leinster without him. MacGinty then missed the trip to La Rochelle last weekend, with fourth-choice stand-off Sam Worsley starting in the number 10 jersey with Max Malins and Jimmy Williams also sidelined with injuries; but he is now fit to return in the league.
Providing an update in his midweek press conference, Bristol director of rugby Pat Lam told BristolLive: “AJ is good now. He is good to go and 100 percent cured.”
There is mixed news in the Bears backrow with club captain Fitz Harding back available this weekend having slipped onto the unavailable list ahead of last weekend’s French test, but Argentina international Santi Grondona is set for a month out on the side lines after suffering a knock in the 35-7 defeat to La Rochelle at the Stade Marcel Deflandre on Saturday night.
Lam said: “Just before half time Santi got his knee twisted. Thankfully he has just shook his medial ligament because he has previously had surgery on both knees but I think Santi will be out for three or four weeks. It is not as bad as we were initially worried about after the game, it is just a strain and he should be back for when we play Benetton. [on January 12]
“Fitz has fully recovered now. He just had a tightness around his hips, he was keen to play but we didn’t want to risk him and gave him a week to sort himself out.”
The bad news for Lam is winger Siva Naulago has torn his calf and is expected to miss the next three months to put further strain on the three-quarters with Max Malins out for the season with an Achilles rupture. Noah Heward is set to return in the coming weeks to provide some further depth in that area.
“Fitz has fully recovered now. He just had a tightness around his hips, he was keen to play but we didn’t want to risk him and gave him a week to sort himself out.”
The bad news for Lam is winger Siva Naulago has torn his calf and is expected to miss the next three months to put further strain on the three-quarters with Max Malins out for the season with an Achilles rupture. Noah Heward is set to return in the coming weeks to provide some further depth in that area.
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