That was a frustrating setback for the former Wallaby but he has returned to full training with a view to featuring at some point at Scotstoun this weekend.
Warriors defence coach Scott Forrest said: “He’s looking good. He trained fully last week. So, I would expect he’ll be back in the mix this weekend. It’s probably important for him, I think, to get himself back on the pitch ahead of the Autumn Internationals. But [it’s also good] for us to have somebody of his quality coming back into the mix.
“You’ve seen over the season how well we’ve been able to rotate the squad and give players an opportunity. And this is just another opportunity for someone to come in and show what they can do.
“To get down to, whatever it was, 20 minutes before kick-off [ahead of the Sharks game] I know that was tough for him. And I think it shows that it was the right thing not to push him through at that point. Ultimately, when you come back from a long lay-off like you had with his hamstring, you want to make sure when you’re back, you’re 100%. And I would say he’s looking like that right now.”
Gregor Townsend names his Scotland squad tomorrow (Tuesday) morning for the forthcoming Autumn International series and Forrest believes that Dempsey is ready to play his part, assuming he comes through Friday night unscathed.
He added: “To be honest, I think it would benefit Scotland if Jack’s 100%. I think he’ll be involved in that because everyone knows what he can do. If he’s going to be back on the pitch for us and be available this weekend, that’s him. He’s 100% ready to go. So we want our guys playing as regularly at the highest level possible, whether that’s with us or whether that’s with Scotland.”
The picture isn’t looking quite so positive for team-mates Zander Fagerson and Rory Darge who continue to track along with their own injuries but who remain some way shy of playing again.
“Zander’s been walking about on the pitch down there,” added Forrest, who also confirmed Glasgow had picked up no fresh injuries in the weekend’s bruising win away to Ospreys.“So again, it’s a good sign when someone’s actually got their boots back on and they’re moving about.. But he’s not back ‘in rugby’ yet, as in with us. He’s still being led by the physio and the S&C team. But that’s an encouraging sign. Rory’s not quite back on pitch yet, but as far as I know, everything’s on track with him. But neither will be involved this weekend.”
On either man’s chances of featuring for Scotland next month, Forrest was more circumspect. “To be honest, I’m not really sure around that, exactly what their timelines are. I think that’ll be a wider conversation between the medical team here and the medical team at Scotland around where their timelines sit in terms of their return and what is the best thing. I know Scotland want them to play and Glasgow want them to play, but ultimately it’s doing what’s best for the individual.”
Will the Bulls have more beef?
Glasgow, of course, have two final commitments to fulfil before their thoughts can start to drift towards either international action or an extended break. The most pressing one is Friday’s match with the Bulls who brought some well-marinated beef with them on their visit to Scotstoun towards the end of last season.
Fuelled by their desire to avenge their defeat in the 2024 URC grand final, the South Africans proved too strong on the night as they ran out 26-19 winners, a win that put a serious dent in Glasgow’s chances of finishing second. But with Jake White having moved on as head coach to be replaced by Johan Ackermann, Forrest doesn’t expect there will be any lingering bad blood in this latest run-in with the Bulls.
“I think there was a lot said in the build-up to [the last game] from both sides,” added Forrest who was in the building last season but not directly involved with the first team. “We know the Bulls, after losing the final at home, definitely had that marked as a game they were targeting. I suppose it was spoken about in here last year, but I can be honest and say that we’ve not really spoken about that this time.
“For us, this is our next opportunity to go out and show what we can do. Our attack’s been excellent the last couple of weeks with the number of points we’ve scored but we’ve also left a lot of tries out there that we could have scored. Then defensively, I’m looking forward to the test for us in terms of the level of physicality that the Bulls are going to bring, which is probably on another level to what we’ll face this season.”
Those who aren’t selected for the Friday Night Lights will instead be pressed into Saturday’s A team derby against Edinburgh.
“The core group will be the younger boys, the academy boys,” confirmed Forrest. “You see how good that group is going right now, obviously Kerr Yule he got his first start at the start of the season, Ferg Watson went really well in pre-season. It’s going to be mainly those senior academy boys, but there’ll be a few pros in there too. Everyone that’s fit, if we can get them all a game this weekend, then that’s a good place to be.”