Home / Sports / Ibitoye Out for Season: Bears Face Injury Crisis
Ibitoye Out for Season: Bears Face Injury Crisis
14 May
Summary
- Winger Gabriel Ibitoye ruled out for season with torn hamstring.
- Club faces significant injury blows, impacting play-off race.
- Other players also out long-term, affecting squad depth.
Bristol Bears' pursuit of a Premiership play-off spot has been severely hampered by another significant injury blow. Winger Gabriel Ibitoye has been ruled out for the remainder of the season due to a torn hamstring, sustained during a recent match.
Ibitoye is expected to undergo surgery and faces a recovery period of three to four months, making him unavailable until the start of the next season. This latest setback compounds an already challenging injury situation for the Bears.
Several other key players, including hooker Gabriel Oghre, back rower Benjamin Grondona, lock Pedro Rubiolo, and number eight Viliame Mata, have also been sidelined with long-term injuries over the past five weeks. This has severely limited the team's available backs.
The club has been forced to rely heavily on academy players, and the continuous injuries have put them below the threshold for fielding the required number of English qualified players per game, influencing squad selection decisions. However, there is some positive news, with flanker Steven Luatua and fly-half AJ MacGinty nearing returns from their respective hamstring and Achilles injuries, potentially available for the final two league games.
