Zander Fagerson is facing a major sweat over his chances of making the British and Irish Lions tour of Australia after it emerged he could be sidelined until June at the earliest.
The Glasgow tighthead prop, who suffered a calf injury in the lead-up to last week’s URC match with Zebre, is among a string of senior Scotland internationals battling to prove their fitness ahead of Andy Farrell’s Lions squad announcement in a fortnight’s time on May 8.
Warriors head coach Franco Smith admitted on Thursday that Fagerson could still recover in time to be available for the tour, which kicks off against Western Force in Perth on June 28 before the first of three Tests against the Wallabies takes place in Brisbane on July 19.
It would be the tightest of turnarounds, however, with his recovery time expected to take between 10 and 12 weeks.
There had been a general expectation that this year’s tour would include the largest contingent of Scots ever selected for Lions duty.
But seven established Scotland starters with genuine aspirations of being named in the squad have been denied a clear run of games to prove their form and fitness.
Zander Fagerson looks to be sidelined until at least June which will give him little time to recover for the Lions tour of Australia
Glasgow star Fagerson was one of the few Scots almost certain of his inclusion in Lions squad but could now miss out
Franco Smith said on Friday that Fagerson’s injury can take 10 to 12 weeks’ recovery
Glasgow players Fagerson, his brother Matt, Sione Tuipulotu, Huw Jones, Jack Dempsey and Scott Cummings, as well as Edinburgh wing Duhan van der Merwe, are all currently at various stages of significant injury lay-offs.
Zander’s situation is perhaps the most concerning given that he would be considered a certainty for Lions inclusion.
Providing a fitness update on Thursday, Glasgow boss Smith said: ‘We’re going to aim to get him (Fagerson) ready to play rugby again, hopefully before the finals (of the URC play-offs), so if we’re there, it will be good to be able to lean on him.
‘But, you know, it is a 10-12 week injury, so we’ll just have to hold our thumbs and see how well he progresses.’
Asked if he felt the injury would impact Fagerson’s Lions involvement, Smith said: ‘I wouldn’t know that, but I would not think that this injury would prevent him from being available.’
Smith is confident that Scotland captain Tuipulotu and fellow centre Jones – both potential Test starters for the Lions – will return for Glasgow’s URC match away to Benetton on May 10, two days after Farrell’s squad is announced.
Tuipulotu has been sidelined for more than three months with a pectoral injury that kept him out of the entire Six Nations, while Jones has been absent with an ankle injury since his last outing for Scotland away to France on March 15.
‘Maybe in a couple of weeks, I hope that Sione will be ready to play against Benetton, the same with Huw,’ said Smith.
Scotland star Huw Jones has also been pencilled in for a return from injury on the same date
Another injured star, second rower Scott Cummings, is set to make earlier return to action
Matt Fagerson, who would have been considered a borderline contender for a back-row berth in the Lions squad, is almost certain to miss out after undergoing ankle surgery last week.
Second-rower Cummings – who has been out since suffering a forearm fracture against Harlequins on January 18 – has been given a glimmer of hope of forcing his way into the mix after being named on the Glasgow bench for Friday night’s match against Bulls, although the fact he was unable to stake his claim during the Six Nations may count against him in the final reckoning.
Similarly, No8 Dempsey could have done with a good run of games for club and country to bolster his Lions claims, but he has not played since sustaining a hamstring injury against Wales in the Six Nations on March 8.
‘Jack ran yesterday and we’re going to now progress that and see how he develops, but he’s definitely on track to be seen again this season,’ said Smith.
Scotland’s record try-scorer Van der Merwe, who was part of the 2021 Lions squad, suffered ankle ligament damage in Edinburgh’s match with Scarlets on March 28 and has since undergone surgery.
Edinburgh head coach Sean Everitt said last weekend he would expect the wing to be back in late May, and potentially available for any URC play-off matches his side may have.
It remains to be seen how all of these injuries play into Farrell’s thinking, with the Lions due to get their summer under way against Argentina in Dublin on June 20 before heading Down Under later that month. The tour concludes with a Test against Australia on August 2.
Matt Fagerson remains sidelined after undergoing ankle surgery just last week
Jack Dempsey has not played since he sustained a hamstring injury against Wales during the Six Nations
Meanwhile, Smith has called on his Glasgow players to keep cool heads as they prepare to face Bulls for the first time since their stunning URC play-off final victory in Pretoria last June.
Warriors claimed the title with a hard-fought 21-16 win at Loftus Versfeld 10 months ago, and they meet again at Scotstoun on Friday evening in a key game in the battle to finish in the top two of the regulation URC table.
‘We’re excited,’ he said. ‘It’s going to be a big rematch. They see this as a revenge match but we didn’t tap into that motivation for this week.
‘It’s more about us improving, playing better, keeping our eye on the big picture as well as improving our process. We are still playing without people (through injury), so we have been a little bit disjointed with people being in and out of the environment through injury or being added through injury or with the changes we made for the Zebre game.
“We’re looking forward to start making some strides towards the last part of the season tomorrow.’
