England have received a boost ahead of their autumn series after Leicester announced that Jonny May’s shoulder injury is only minor and he could even be available for the weekend’s Champions Cup action.
May was hurt early in the first half of Saturday’s victory over Northampton after running into Teimana Harrison and Alex Waller and was forced to leave the pitch using his jersey as a makeshift sling.
Initial fears that the injury could be serious receded following an X-ray after the game and Tigers interim coach Geordan Murphy on Tuesday delivered another positive update.
“Jonny has a bang on his AC joint which is pretty painful, but there’s no structural damage,” Murphy said.
“We’re hopeful he could be available for the weekend. It’s certainly not a long-term injury.”
May was the standout player during England’s June tour to South Africa where he extended his strike rate to five tries in five matches – the same record he held for Leicester until Saturday’s misfortune.
Eddie Jones could ill-afford to lose his most lethal finisher ahead of the Tests against the Springboks, New Zealand, Japan and Australia that begin on November 3.
England are already missing Anthony Watson until January because of an Achilles issue and on Tuesday it was confirmed that Marland Yarde will miss the rest of the season with a knee injury.
May’s possible availability for the Champions Cup opener against Ulster on Saturday is a lift to club and country, however.
Scotland flanker David Denton is a doubt for the trip to Belfast as he follows the return to play protocols for concussion after suffering a head injury against Saints at Twickenham.
