I’VE been lucky enough to be involved in a fair few games over the past few seasons but tonight I will be cheering the boys on from the sidelines.

The side for our LV= Cup opener against Harlequins has a different look to it but there are plenty of young boys keen to grasp their chance and other experienced players making a welcome return from injury.

It’s the first game that I have missed since last January’s LV= Cup fixture in Newcastle and hopefully I can get over a few niggles and be back in contention for next week’s game against the Ospreys in Bridgend before the return of the Guinness Pro12 against Munster.

I have been struggling with a calf injury since the Falcons game a fortnight ago and passed a late fitness test to get the green light against Ulster last week only for it to flare up at half-time.

I also suffered a bang to the head in the second half and had to come off; it was probably for the best as I don’t think I was doing myself justice because of my calf.

It was another frustrating defeat but it wasn’t all doom and gloom – it was a resilient performance at a tough place to go.

We headed to Belfast with a depleted team and suffered another blow when Ashley Smith, our only senior centre, had to pull out because of injury.

But the boys all put everything in and I think 16-6 would have been a fair reflection only for them to score with the last play to make it look a bit more one-sided.

Of course we want to win and we feel we should be doing better than 10th but there are reasons to be positive.

We ended the game with a young side – Elliot Dee, James Benjamin, Ollie Griffiths, Angus O’Brien, Barney Nightingale and Ashton Hewitt are all under 21 – but showed plenty of character.

And once again the set piece was a massive positive, Ulster are strong at the lineout but we disrupted them, stood firm against their driving maul and had at least parity in the scrum.

That is hugely encouraging and it totally different to last season when we struggled to get any sort of a platform.

Hopefully the set piece will continue to go well at Quins and it’s a chance for the likes of Phil Price, Owen Evans, Hugh Gustafson and David Young to impress in the front row.

And it’s good to see that Cory Hill makes his return in the second row; I am sure he will lead the side well and is also calling the lineouts.

That’s been keeping me busy while I have once again been ‘bubble-wrapped’ at training this week.

Being injured reduces involvement on the pitch but doing analysis is the next best thing, helping the likes of Cory and Coombsy by looking at the opposition and thinking of specific moves to help try and dismantle Harlequins’ defensive policies.

It’s good to stay involved and I intend to head to London with the boys and offer some encouragement, possibly acting as a waterboy as long as the calf can take it!

I know that everyone involved will be desperate to put their name in the frame for selection when the Guinness Pro12 returns and it’s encouraging to see so many teammates nearing a return to fitness.

Hopefully the LV= Cup can help build a bit of momentum and then competition for places will help us push up the table before Christmas.