Thursday 26 April 2018 11:57, UK
Saracens have revealed that Billy Vunipola could make his long-awaited return to action on Sunday against London Irish.
The England No 8 fractured his arm in January, adding to a torrid 18-month spell that also included substantial lay-offs due to knee and shoulder surgery.
Saracens have managed his recovery carefully and will not rush him back, although his return will be a huge boost as the Premiership heads towards the semi-finals.
Director of rugby Mark McCall is keen to give the 25-year-old some game time before the Aviva Premiership play-offs and a final call will be made shortly before the team is announced for Sunday's clash against London Irish.
"We'll make a decision on Friday as to whether he's involved this weekend or whether we give him until next weekend," McCall.
"He's close but hasn't had a lot of field sessions and (Wednesday) was probably his toughest session so we'll see how he reacts and make a decision on Friday.
"It's been almost 16 weeks that he's been out and we just need to be careful to put him into a rugby match without playing much rugby; although he's been out for that long, he was out for quite a long time with his previous injury and he doesn't really have a bank of games behind him this year. I think he's only played three full matches.
"It would be useful for him to have a couple of games before the semi-final for him to get back to somewhere near his best. The more game time he can get the better for Billy."
