Williams blow for Boro
Published 14:21 30/06/10 By Pa Sports
Middlesbrough midfielder Rhys Williams is set to miss the start of the new season as he prepares to stay in Australia to continue his rehabilitation from a pelvic problem.
The 21-year-old missed a large spell of Boro's Championship campaign last term and was also forced to sit out the World Cup in South Africa.
Manager Gordon Strachan told the club's official website: "He will not be back in the immediate future. He'll stay in Australia, there's a specialist there who's not with the Australian FA, he's a specialist that our head physio Grant Downie knows and he'll stay there for a while. With the body shape he's got there's not much muscle to him, so he needs to work on all that area."
Elsewhere, fellow absentees Matthew Bates, Seb Hines and Tony McMahon are all making good progress in their recovery from long-term problems.
Boro have drafted in experienced fitness coach Roger Spry to work with the players ahead of the 2010/11 campaign, although Strachan has revealed recruiting him permanently is unlikely at the moment because "he's got commitments all over the world".
