Jones has been out of action since early this month but the Ospreys are quietly confident he will return in time for their December double header with French Champions Castres Olympique.
The 32-year-old suffered damage to his calf muscle in the opening Dove Men Series Test against South Africa two-and-a-half weeks ago, when he was forced to leave the field with just over half an hour played of a pulsating encounter in Cardiff.
He missed Wales’ subsequent wins over Argentina (40-9) and Tonga (17-7) as a result and won’t face Australia this weekend as Warren Gatland’s men look to end the autumn campaign with a first win over one of the big three southern hemisphere sides in five years.
Rhodri Jones of the Scarlets starts in Jones’ place against the Wallabies but the Ospreys have their fingers crossed the double British & Irish Lions tourist could take the field for the must-win continental clashes with Castres on Friday, December 6 and 13.
“We haven’t ruled Adam out of the European games. Hopefully, he will be ready to go,” said Ospreys boss Steve Tandy, who has recently seen fellow Wales cap Aaron Jarvis recover from a long-term knee injury and a minor groin strain that kept him out of the Dove Men Series.
“He won’t be too far away. He is coming along nicely, but we will review that week by week and then see his availability for the Heineken.
“But it has been a real positive to get Aaron back and come through a game (against Zebre) and Dan Suter has done outstandingly well through the LV= Cup and also did well against Munster when he came on and again against Zebre at the weekend. We are really pleased with that department, anyway.”
A returning Jones would be a big boost for the Ospreys given his stellar reputation at scrum time, especially as Castres have built their own success on a strong setpiece.
Tandy’s troops are in need of back-to-back wins at the Stade Pierre Antione a week on Friday and the Liberty Stadium seven days later as they look to keep their latest European dream alive after a slow start. The Ospreys lost both their opening fixtures last month, slipping to a 19-9 defeat at home to triple Heineken Cup kings Leinster before being beaten 27-16 by Northampton Saints at Franklin’s Gardens. They currently sit bottom of Pool 1, eight points behind leaders Leinster, five adrift of Northampton and four shy of Castres.
Things look far more encouraging for the Ospreys in the RaboDirect PRO12, though, as they target a record-breaking fifth Celtic crown. They occupy second-place in the standings after their 30-20 win over Zebre in Swansea and could go top of the table if they beat Glasgow at the Liberty Stadium and the Dragons defeat leaders Munster at Rodney Parade.
