Alex Cuthbert: Injury 'doesn't look good', says Ospreys head coach Toby Booth

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Alex Cuthbert looks dejected after sustaining an injuryImage source, Huw Evans picture agency
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Alex Cuthbert has won 57 caps for Wales

Ospreys head coach Toby Booth admits Alex Cuthbert's hamstring injury "doesn't look good".

The Wales wing pulled up moments before he looked set to score a try during Ospreys' 17-27 defeat by Munster last weekend.

"It doesn't look good. We're working through what that actually means in real time at the moment," said Booth.

"He's not going very well because I've not seen him which is never a good sign."

The Ospreys head coach added: "We're obviously devastated for him, the battles he's been through to get back.

"Our feelings are for him and his family."

Ahead of his side's clash with the Lions on Saturday, Booth confirmed full-back Max Nagy has returned to training while scrum-half Luke Davies is fit again.

Prop Nicky Smith is expected to return to action for the fixture with Sale Sharks on 6 April after sustaining a rib injury.

Sam Parry is poised to make his 150th appearance for the Welsh region this weekend, and the hooker revealed the Ospreys held key talks following the Munster defeat in a bid to ensure they improve against the Lions.

"It's nice to have the personal milestone and I look forward to celebrating that, but there's a big job to do this weekend against a good Lions team who we definitely need to bounce back against and put in a good performance after the Munster loss," said Parry.

"It was a tough loss, we're really disappointed.

"There's been some honest conversations this week around reviewing it, looking at our execution and bits of our game that we didn't do well.

"But on the flip side, when you look back and break it down, there's a lot of positive bits in there that we can definitely take a lot from."

Meanwhile, Booth admitted he is finding putting a competitive squad together amid financial constraints challenging.

Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) funding into each of the country's four regions is set to decrease to £4.5m next season, down from £5.2m this season and from £6.95m the season previous.

It comes after Ospreys announced they made a loss of more than £2m for the year ending June 2023.

"Making the jigsaw fit and getting enough strength-in-depth is a challenge," added Booth.

"The biggest challenge is trying to improve your squad with a decreasing budget.

"Y11 have been great, we're very clear in what we are and our stability, despite the losses.

"We feel pretty supported and very clear on what we have to do."

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