TOMMY BOWE and Andrew Trimble could both be set for a return to the Ulster squad for Saturday’s Guinness PRO12 meeting with the Ospreys, but Stuart McCloskey looks set to be sidelined for at least a month.
Bowe has been hampered by a knee injury suffered in Ireland’s World Cup quarter-final defeat by Argentina 11-months-ago. He made a brief return with Ulster towards the end of last season, but a recurrence of the injury has ruled him out since April.
The 32-year-old trained with the squad on Tuesday, as did fellow international winger Andrew Trimble. Having missed the start of the season under the IRFU’s player management scheme, he has been troubled by a foot injury and didn’t recover in time for last Friday night’s impressive victory over Glasgow Warriors.
“Trimby and Tommy Bowe trained today, we’ll see how they react to that. We’ve got a pretty decent squad for consideration on Saturday afternoon,” said Ulster assistant-coach Allen Clarke.
“It will depend on how they recover, to be honest. That’s a straight-up answer. It’s Trimby’s first full session on the pitch with us, so we’ll see how he goes.”
McCloskey was forced off 14 minutes into the 22-17 win at Scotstoun - Ulster’s first league victory at the ground since 2011 - with a foot injury, which required him to wear a protective boot after the game. The big centre was sent for a scan on Tuesday, the results of which are as yet unknown, but Clarke admits he is unlikely to play for at least the next “three-to-four” weeks.
Stuart Olding replaced him, but he later had to come off himself after suffering a groin injury, though Ulster were relieved it was not as bad as first feared for the unfortunate 23-year-old: “I think we were all relieved because we feared the worst and he was smiling afterwards because of that,” said Clarke.
“He settled, but it’ll take a little bit of time, particularly with his feet and his ability to sidestep people. He certainly won’t be available this week.”
Luke Marshall will again miss out as he continues his recovery from a concussion suffered in the win over Scarlets, though Craig Gilroy is available for selection after missing the Glasgow game with a toe injury.
Paddy Jackson was also sporting a protective boot following the bruising encounter against future Scotland boss Gregor Townsend’s charges, but Clarke says his was merely a precaution: “Paddy’s grand, it was just precautionary. It seems to be quite common now and it’s a good thing. If boys are coming back on a flight, they can look after any swelling that may have occurred.”
Having won their first three games, the Ospreys found themselves 31-0 down to Leinster last weekend. A second-half recovery narrowed the margin of defeat, but it was comprehensive nonetheless.
While praising the Welsh side’s counter-attacking ability, Clarke admits analysis of their start to the season is tempered by that poor first-half against Leinster and the fact two of their wins were against basement sides Treviso and Zebre.
“It’s difficult to assess because they’ve played both the Italian teams at home. Against Connacht, they had threats throughout the pitch. The game was tight for periods," he added.
“The Ospreys have an ability to hit you from deep. They’re very good at converting pressure and field position into points.”
