Bath centre Jonathan Joseph is set to return to playing fitness by the time England’s Six Nations campaign kicks off following an impressively rapid return from injury.
The centre was ruled out of England’s game against Wales but returned for the big game against Australia and then saw himself on the bench against Uruguay.
Joseph sustained a chest injury during the recent World Cup and upon returning to Bath he was told that he needed to undergo chest surgery to repair the damage. He was initially expected to be out for up to three months, however, his rehabilitation has gone much better than was expected and so the Englishman could be back in time for the Six Nations.
Now, Eurosport writes that Toby Booth, Bath assistant coach, admitted his surprise at Joseph’s progress and was excited by the prospect of having the centre back earlier than expected.
“Jonathan is out of his sling, he’s had early rehab and it’s coincided with some time off after the World Cup.We’ve allowed him to go and freshen up and relax a little bit. Now he’s into the rehab side of things. He’s in front of schedule, which is fantastic for us. Everyone’s different, but he’s on course to probably be back in eight weeks rather than 12. Whereas we were looking at January, we’re probably looking at December now.”
As long as his progress stays on track, Joseph could be set to play in Bath’s double-bill against London Wasps on December 13th and 19th.
