Updated: Borders rugby star Darcy Graham targeting December comeback after almost two months out injured

The winger has yet to feature for Edinburgh this United Rugby Championship season, his last game having been Scotland’s 36-14 loss to Ireland at the Rugby World Cup in France back on Saturday, October 7.

The 26-year-old is listed by his club as having a hip injury but he told Viaplay, while working as a pundit for the streaming company, that it’s a long-standing issue with one of his knees keeping him out of action.

His recovery is going according to plan and he’s hoping to be fit again for Edinburgh’s match away to Ulster on Saturday, December 2, however.

“It’s coming along really good,” said the Borderer.

“I’ve been running and I’m aiming for the Ulster game in round seven to get back.

“It's been an ongoing issue now for almost 11 months with my knee, and after the world cup, I just needed to get it sorted.

“I’ve been in a bit of pain for the past year and I’ve just cracked on with it, but I’d had enough and just needed to get it sorted out.

“It’s good that it’s sorted now so I can get back to playing with the boys. It feels like ages since I’ve been playing.”

Graham’s long-running knee issue stems from medial cruciate ligament rupture he sustained during Edinburgh’s 38-17 defeat at home to Munster in December last year.

A metal screw was inserted into the knee affected as part of his treatment for that injury, allowing him to return to playing in March, but it continued to cause him discomfort, so after going off against Ireland in Paris with an injured hip requiring recovery time, he decided to kill two birds with one stone by getting his knee fixed too.

New Edinburgh head coach Sean Everitt explained: “He had a procedure on his knee.

“It’s not as though his knee was damaged — he had a screw in his knee that had to be taken out because it was causing irritation. That’s what he has had to live with for the last 11 months.

“It wasn’t that he was carrying an injury as such or damage to the ligaments.

“A screw in his knee was causing irritation, and that’s been removed since the world cup.

“He’s feeling a lot better and he’s on track to play against Ulster.”

Graham’s been keeping abreast of changes to Edinburgh’s tactics made by Everitt despite being out of action, saying: “He’s been really good.

“I’ve had a fair bit of time already with him and he’s been quite clear about what he wants.

“He’s just adding to what we’ve got in terms of our attacking game and he’s wanting to bring in the kicking battle. That kicking game is huge now.

“The high ball is one of the hardest skills in the game, and especially with a wee bit of pressure on you, it makes it even harder.

“We’re just building that into our game and kicking on.”

Graham, capped 39 times since making his international debut in 2018, scoring 24 tries, just three shy of fellow ex-Green Stuart Hogg’s all-time record of 27, has been at Edinburgh for six years.

The capital club, due to host South Africa’s Vodacom Bulls tomorrow night at their Hive Stadium home ground, are currently eighth in the championship, with 12 points from four fixtures.