Murphy juggling injuries, illnesses and Covid concerns

SELECTION ISSUES AHEAD OF CUP QUARTER-FINAL FIXTURE

to make sure he is 100 per cent before he has to go back out on the playing field,” Murphy said.

“He has been training, but his loads aren’t at the level just yet when we would put him into a big game.

“We may see him over the course of the rest of the season.”

Outside back Sam AsplandRobinson has not featured since the season restarted.

Murphy said: “Sam has come through. He’s had an illness – a non-Covid-related illness – for the past couple of days. Again we want to get a good few weeks under Sam’s belt before we put him forward for selection. But he, at the minute, is ill.”

However, flanker Tommy Reffell has been training and “is back and available for selection for the weekend”.

On England fly-half George Ford, who sat out the Wasps and Northampton Saints games, Murphy said: “He’s another one of the guys who had a bump but rested over the weekend and was walking around with the boys.”

Tigers, meanwhile, have responded to reports one of their summer signings has tested positive for coronavirus.

Argentinian centre Matías Moroni was confirmed as a Tigers player on July 20 but has yet to join up with his new team-mates due to the global pandemic.

He was listed along with fellow Pumas Felipe Ezcurra, Tomás Cubelli, Matías Orlando and Mateo Carreras as having returned positive test in reports that emerged on Friday.

Argentina head coach Mario Ledesma, and assistants Nicolás Fernández Miranda and Juan Martín Fernández Lobbe, were also reported to have tested positive.

Follow-up reports said there were “11 active cases among the