Semi Radradra’s scheduled return for ‘early October’ has clearly been delayed as Bristol Bears’ medical department take every precaution to ensure their marquee man is firing on all cylinders when he runs out on the field.
Star centre Radradra is recovering from a second knee surgery in the space of two years and is up and running and sharing footage of his training on social media, quoting former NBA basketball great Kobe Bryant as saying: “Turn every setback into a comeback.”
Sadly for Bristol Bears fans that comeback on the pitch has been delayed, with director of rugby Pat Lam saying in August he hoped to have the explosive 30-year-old back on the pitch by early October, only for those dates to have come and gone.
Discussing Radradra’s timeline, Lam said: “He is training and stuff but coming off the surgeries he has had I would say we are looking at a November return now.
READ MORE: Bristol Bears confirm the signing of Wasps player, but not the one expected
“It is one of those situations where we are working with the surgeon, Jonathan Webb, and working with our medical team. He is out running which is good. But it is the same with Siva [Naulago], Stevie [Luatua], Semi, we just want to make sure we get it right and they don’t break down again.
"He is on track. One of things we are making sure is that he doesn’t come back too soon.
“My main focus is the guys who are playing but he is not too far away. I am not going to push him because when he comes back I want that to be it, and he will play the rest of the season.”
There is a sense Lam, obsessed with his constant ‘learnings’ wants to avoid past pitfalls when in concerns rushing Radradra back as he appeared to play the majority of the 2021/22 season at less than 100 percent having had surgery on a knee injury sustained helping Fiji win gold in the rugby sevens at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics with Fiji.
Less than a year out from the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France, Radradra - who has captained his country at the 15-a-side version of the game - was called up for Fiji’s Autumn internationals.
But Pat Lam said much like clubmate Steven Luatua who has been called up for Samoa for the first time having previously presented the New Zealand All Blacks, Radradra will not be fit to play.
Lam told Bristol Live: “We are working through that. He is injured. It is similar to the situation with Stevie. He is not fit and he won’t be fit for that so we are just working through that.”
Fiji play Scotland on November 5 and Ireland on November 12 this Autumn.
READ MORE:
