Macai Simmons has been officially ruled out of Cup Match after a visit to the doctor yesterday for a hand fracture he suffered while playing for St George’s in a league match last weekend.

Simmons’s hand will remain in a cast for a few more weeks and, while his hopes of playing in Cup Match next week have been dashed, the all-rounder hasn’t ruled out playing again this season.

“Possibly, and possibly not, because I still won’t have it 100 per cent and may have some doubts in my head,” he said. “I don’t want to play with any doubts.

“Good news is I probably won’t be out as long as I thought. This is all part of life. Things don’t always happen the way you want them to. There are always hiccups in the road.”

Simmons would have been a key man in the St George’s team with his batting and bowling, having hit form at the right time with 92 while playing for St David’s in the Eastern Counties first round against Flatts on Saturday.

“It’s all about the comeback,” the 28-year-old said. “I don’t want to focus on what happened to me because it could have happened to anybody.

“Mentally, I’m cool and I’ll keep my body physically in shape. There is always next season. This will just give somebody else a chance to showcase how good they are.

“There is more than one person on the team and it is going to take more than just me to win the cup back. Everybody just has to play their role.

“I can’t just take the cast off and play. These are the cards I have been dealt, so I’ll deal with it the best I can. Life is not over, I’m only 28 years old.

“I’m a fighter, I’m not going to give up.”

St George’s will also assess the condition of opening batsman Treadwell Gibbons before selecting their team tomorrow night after the final trial match.

Gibbons suffered a hand injury in the same league match and was taken to the Lamb Foggo Urgent Care Centre for treatment. The left-hander, who received stitches to close the wound, has not been selected to play in the trial match.