Sowden-Taylor grimaces as his ankle is caught beneath him

The 24-year-old suffered a horrific dislocation in the loss to the Ospreys in September and was initially expected to miss the rest of the season.

But an intensive recovery period has left the three-cap man targeting the 26 January league game with Borders.

"It's been much quicker than expected, that's down to the medical treatment," he told the South Wales Echo.

"I started running a couple of weeks ago and hope to return to training towards the end of next week."

Blues and Wales lock Robert Sidoli has also targeted a January return, having been out since November with a shoulder injury.

"The physio and doctor are quite pleased and I'm looking to be fit for the middle of January," said Sidoli.