Lee ‘touch and go’ for World Cup

Editor

Warren Gatland has played down speculation that Samson Lee will be ready for the World Cup admitting the tighthead is 'touch and go'.

Lee suffered an Achilles tendon injury during the Six Nations, and has been battling to be fit for the World Cup over the last four months.

Earlier this week, the Scarlets had been optimistic that Lee would be fit in time for the tournament, but it seems he is unlikely to be fit for the opener against Uruguay.

While that in itself is not a major issue, he will likely be short of match fitness by the time Wales face pool rivals Australia and England, even if he does recover.

"He’s doing pretty well but it’s touch and go in terms of the World Cup squad," Gatland told Sky Sports News.

"We might have to take him as an injured player and hope he’s OK by the second or third game."

Aaron Jarvis, Tomas Francis and Scott Andrews are the other tightheads in the Welsh squad, who have just returned from a training camp in Qatar.