(Picture by Serena Tremlett, 0574118)

GUERNSEY’S best player, Jim Regnard, is out for the rest season with a broken leg.  The big number eight broke his left shinbone and dislocated his ankle in training on Tuesday night.

It is understood to have happened when he tackled team-mate and prop Layton Batiste.  Regnard underwent an operated on Wednesday night and a plate was attached to the fracture. He is due to be released from hospital today and he is not expected to return to action before the end of the season.

‘It is a big blow, but it gives the younger guys a chance to stand up and be counted for,’ said a defiant Guernsey captain Simon Sharratt.  ‘One negative creates positives and opportunities for other guys in the squad, but we are going to miss him.’

The first game he misses is today’s crucial London Three South-West League match at KCS Old Boys in Surrey.