Leicester's Geoff Parling is helped from the field after picking up an injury against Harlequins this time last year © Getty Images

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Players/Officials: Geoff Parling

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Teams: Leicester Tigers

Leicester Tigers boss Richard Cockerill has revealed that Geoff Parling's knee injury is not as bad as feared but that lock will not play again this year.

Parling suffered medial ligament damage in last weekend's Heineken Cup success over Ulster and that immediately sparked fears that a player who missed nearly all of last season with a similar problem was facing another lengthy spell on the sidelines. However, Cockerill has explained that the player should be fit to return to action in January.

"It's not too bad so we hope it will only around be four to six weeks," the coach told BBC Radio Leicester. "Thankfully, it has nothing to do with his old injury.

"It was Thomas Waldrom getting nudged off the ball and falling over on his legs, so he [Waldrom] is getting a bit of stick at the moment - even more than normal.

"It's just unfortunate and purely bad luck. We seem to be having that a little bit too often at the moment but Geoff will be fine and he will hopefully be fit within the next six weeks."