BBC SPORT | Rugby Union | English | Catt to rest for a month

Bath and England centre Mike Catt is to spend a month on the sidelines in a bid to get back to full fitness.

The versatile back missed out on this month's Test wins over New Zealand, Australia and South Africa.

He has managed only a handful of outings for Bath this season due to a persistent hamstring injury, partly caused by a back problem sustained two years ago.

Both his club and England now want Catt to undergo a sustained period of rehabilitation to get him fully fit before the end of the year.

He now needs a period where he doesn't have to do anything

Bath conditioning coach Chris Mallic

Chris Mallic, head of physical preparation at Bath, said Catt is likely to step out of the firing line after this Friday's Zurich Premiership game against the Sharks.

"Mike will have a period of around four weeks' rest to settle things down and get him back up to speed," Mallic said.

"He will receive physio-directed rehab as well as strength conditioning, and he should be back late December.

"Looking at him four weeks ago he wasn't in great shape but we've persisted with him, attempting to play some games.

"He has actually done reasonably well considering but he now needs a period where he doesn't have to do anything."

Meanwhile, Bath vice-captain Dan Lyle could return to action in a couple of weeks as his shoulder injury appears less severe than first feared.

Dan Lyle slides in to score a try for Bath
Lyle's injury is not as bad as first thought

The 32-year-old forward sustained the injury during a bruising encounter with Bristol last week.

He will see a specialist on Tuesday in order to assess the severity of the injury.

Coach Michael Foley initially feared Lyle had damaged his A/C joint and could have sustained ligament damage, resulting in an extended period out of action.

"Dan is off to see a specialist, but the injury is shaping up to be better than we first feared," Foley told the club's website.

"He will not be fit for this weekend, but hopefully it will be only be a couple of weeks. We will know in 24 hours exactly what the situation is."

There is better news for flanker Adam Vander and full-back Iain Balshaw, who could return for the first Parker Pen Challenge Cup second-round fixture against Bridgend on 6 December.


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