Geordan Murphy will be out for a month © Getty Images

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Players/Officials: Miles Benjamin | Geordan Murphy

Tournaments/Tours: Aviva Premiership

Teams: England | Leicester Tigers

The Leicester Tigers will be without their skipper Geordan Murphy for their match with Aviva Premiership champions Harlequins on Saturday.

Murphy sustained a knee injury against Saracens last Saturday and could miss their Heineken Cup opener against Toulouse on October 14. And there is also some bleak news regarding new signing Miles Benjamin. He is yet to play in the Premiership for the Tigers and it looks like he will have to wait a while longer to make his debut due to a neck injury which occurred in an A League came a couple of weeks ago.

"Geordan has a bruised knee and will be (out for) three or four weeks," Cockerill confirmed to the Leicester Mercury. "That's disappointing for him but that is the game we play. We just have to get on with it. Unfortunately, Miles suffered a pretty nasty injury to his neck against Northampton in the A League two weeks ago which has resulted in a spinal injury.

"He will be potentially out for the three to four months. The injuries are disappointing and you don't want them, but that will give opportunities for someone else to come into the side and perform. The season will be about the squad, and the club has always been about the squad and the sum of the parts rather than the individual. Yet again, that will be tested earlier than we would have liked."

Leicester were forced to start the season without the likes of Tom Croft, Ben Youngs and Louis Deacon but he is hopeful that he will have some of his other previously injured contingent back in action imminently.

"We have Niall Morris and Adam Thompstone fit, and there's also Matt Smith and Dan Bowden, so we have some good options around in the backs," Cockerill said. "Croft and Youngs are doing very well with their recovery, and Louis Deacon is close to resuming full training. Mat Tait and Ed Slater will hopefully be fit for next week, and there is an A League game on the Monday which they could play in."