Resilient Beno back early for Bath run-in
PROP star Beno Obano is set to give Bath’s title chances a huge boost after making a faster than expected recovery from injuries sustained on England duty last year. Loosehead prop Obano suffered knee ligament and hamstring damage at an England training camp last May that was expected to side-line him for the season.
However, Bath coach Toby Booth has revealed the determined 24-year-old is training again and could feature in the Premiership during the Six Nations period. Booth, below, told The Rugby Paper: “Beno’s ahead of schedule and he’s got to take an enormous amount of credit for that, as have our medical team.
“He’s embraced everything that’s been thrown at him and shown great mental resilience over such a long period.
“He’s in training and although we’re still taking him out of certain parts of it, especially in the position he plays, he’s coming along really nicely. We’ll get him back into full training, minimise the risk and then as soon as he’s fit and able, he’ll be out there.” Obano’s recovery will be closely monitored by England, along with that of full-back Anthony Watson who is closing in on a return after a year out following two bouts of Achilles surgery. Booth added: “Anthony’s not fully integrated yet but he’s doing well. He’s looking forward to getting involved with the lads properly and then once we get him into full training, we’ll see how that reacts and that will be the final tick in the box.
“I’m not sure about our next Premiership game against Newcastle. When he’s been out for so long you want a couple of full weeks of training before you expose him. We’ll do what’s right for the player and hopefully he’ll be back pretty soon.”
Meanwhile, Booth says Zach Mercer will be the “next cab off the rank” in the event of England suffering further back row injuries.Dynamic Mercer, 21, could consider himself unfortunate not to be named in England’s initial Six Nations squad, but Booth said: “Zach’s just got to continue to develop on and off the pitch physically, mentally and technically for us.
“He’s got to keep putting in strong performances and that opportunity will come. He’s the next cab off the rank, which is what he’s been told.”
With centre Jonathan Joseph and hooker Tom Dunn back in harness after injury and Watson and Obano to come, Booth is convinced eighth-placed Bath can launch a title challenge with ten regular season games remaining.
He added: “We’re going into a critical part of the season now and you need to perform well during the Six Nations period. JJ and the others will certainly have big parts to play.
“We’ve got Newcastle followed by Northampton, Harlequins and Saracens and if we do well over the next two months, we’ll be thereabouts.”