» Winger May close to a return for Gloucester,
GEORGE Skivington hopes to have England winger Jonny May back before the end of the season. May, 31, limped off with a ligament injury in his ankle in the 35-24 victory over Newcastle Falcons on April 24.
The flying winger looks unlikely to feature on Friday night against London Irish but Skivington says he is hopeful he could be back for the West Country derby against Bath or final game against Worcester Warriors, with the club seemingly needing to win all three games with bonus points to have any chance of qualifying for next season’s Heineken Champions Cup.
May, England’s second-highest try scorer with 33, has also had to deal with the disappointment of missing out on making the British and Irish Lions’ initial 37-man squad, with team-mates Louis Rees-zammit and Chris Harris the club’s two representatives.
Gloucester head coach Skivington said: “Jonny is doing his rehab. He is not a million miles away.
“Jonny is good. Obviously Jonny was disappointed [about the Lions] but has moved on and he is a very good professional athlete and he is mentally tough.
“He is already focused to get back for us. I am hopeful Jonny will play in the back end of this season at some point but it is just about making sure he is ready and not rushing him through.”
Despite his try-scoring exploits for England, the 66-cap international has never been picked for the Lions and had made it a personal goal to strive towards, with this summer’s tour to South Africa realistically his last chance to pull on the famous red jersey.
Skivington said: “Obviously Jonny was disappointed about the Lions and we were all disappointed for him
“He’s one of our own so you feel his pain. He’s put four years of graft in with a goal, so it’s tough.
“He’s such a good professional and so diligent, he understands the game and that things change very quickly, so I have no doubt we’ll see the best of Jonny off the back of this.”
If May can overcome his ankle injury he has a golden opportunity to reel in England record-holder Rory Underwood, who scored 49 tries, against the USA and Canada at Twickenham.
England head coach Eddie Jones is likely to pick a combination of experience and youth for the internationals.
Skivington said: “It is up to Eddie Jones whether he plays him in the summer but Jonny is very honest and he will have a discussion with England about what is best for him.
“He is keen to get some games in before the summer break whether that is a couple with us or a few with England.”