Borderer Darcy Graham recovering from ankle injury ahead of schedule
Borderer Darcy Graham’s recovery from an ankle injury sustained in July is ahead of schedule and he’s now expected to be fit again in time for the start of Edinburgh’s new United Rugby Championship campaign.
His club’s head coach, Sean Everitt, was initially targeting their second game of the new season – at home to Ulster at the capital’s Hive Stadium on Friday, October 3 – for the Hawick 28-year-old’s return to action, but he’s now expecting him to be available for selection for their opener away to Zebre Parma in Italy on Saturday, September 27, after resuming training this week.
The Scotland right-winger picked up that ankle injury quarter of an hour into his British and Irish Lions debut against a First Nations and Pasifika XV in Melbourne in Australia on Tuesday, July 22, after being given a belated call-up by the multinational outfit’s head coach, Andy Farrell, having been left out of his original squad of 38, later expanded to 44.
Edinburgh also expect Graham’s fellow Lions Duhan van der Merwe and Pierre Schoeman to be ready for the start of the new season, though they won’t be in the frame for this Friday’s friendly double-header at home to South Yorkshire’s Doncaster Knights and London’s Ealing Trailfinders.
“Pierre, Duhan and Darcy won’t be involved this weekend but we’re hoping that they’re up for selection next week,” said Everitt.
Graham is recovering more rapidly than forecast and it’s now more a case of expecting than hoping that he’ll be ready to face Ulster, according to Everitt.
“Our target was to get him back on the field for the first URC game,” said the 55-year-old.
“We weren’t going to rush things if he wasn’t 100% but he’s coming through rather quickly now and he’ll be joining parts of our training on Thursday.”
Fellow Borderer Jack Utterson is also unavailable for this week’s friendlies after being left concussed by a challenge while playing in old club Kelso’s 14-8 win hosting Melrose on Saturday on draft.