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Ben Earl will be available for the start of England\u2019s Six Nations campaign after Saracens received a positive update on his knee problem.<\/p>\n
Earl sustained the injury to his right leg during the warm-up for Saturday\u2019s Gallagher Premiership victory over Harlequins and left The Stoop on crutches, raising concerns that he might be facing a lengthy spell out.<\/p>\n
But a scan has revealed medial meniscus damage which has now been repaired and England\u2019s star of the recent World Cup should be back in action for Saracens in January.<\/p>\n
\u201cBen had a minor knee procedure this morning. We anticipate he\u2019ll be out for between four to six weeks. Overall I think that would be a good result,\u201d director of rugby Mark McCall said.<\/p>\n
Earl made his first start for England during the World Cup warm-up fixtures yet went on to become their best performing player in France, claiming the number eight jersey ahead of the more established Billy Vunipola and Lewis Ludlam.<\/p>\n
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Ben Earl sustained an injury while on club duty for Saracens<\/p>\n
However, in excelling during the march to third place, following an agonising defeat to South Africa in the semi-finals, the 25-year-old faced a heavy workload and McCall believes he may benefit from the enforced lay-off.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re all pleased it\u2019s not a serious long-term injury. I think he will be playing in the month of January,\u201d McCall said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are three or four games in January so that would be ample time for Ben to get in.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s had a busy time with a lot of minutes in August, September and October, so to have a six-week period not playing rugby might actually be good for him in the long run.\u201d<\/p>\n
Elliot Daly\u2019s hamstring issue – also incurred during the warm-up before the London derby – is only minor and he should return in time to face Northampton on December 2.<\/p>\n
The prognosis on Alex Lozowski is less upbeat with the former England centre facing an extended spell on the sidelines with the ACL damage sustained at The Stoop.<\/p>\n
\u201cAlex has been such a reliable good player for us since he arrived and I can\u2019t remember the last time he was injured,\u201d McCall said.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs far as I know it\u2019s as clean an ACL injury as you can get which can impact how quickly you come back.\u201d<\/p>\n