STRIKER Michael Symes faces a race against time to regain his fitness ahead of Cherries’ eagerly-awaited play-off semi-final.

Symes, who finished as Cherries’ third highest goalscorer during the regulation season, missed the final 11 games after being troubled by a persistent groin injury.

And although the 27-year-old had been on the verge of returning on several occasions, he was thwarted after the symptoms kept recurring.

But Symes, who has been restricted to 16 starts and seven appearances from the bench during his debut season with Cherries, is due to return to full training on Thursday.

Boss Lee Bradbury said: “At long last, Michael should be back. He’s had a hard time recently but is very hungry to be involved and is a big player for us. If he is fit, he could play some part.”

Danny Ings, who sat out the 2-1 defeat by Rochdale due to a sore ankle, is expected to be in contention to face Huddersfield, while loan star Donal McDermott should recover from a hamstring injury.

However, Mathieu Baudry (groin) is rated by Bradbury as “touch and go” for the first leg, while Joe Partington looks certain to miss out due to a nagging hip problem.

Meanwhile, Bradbury is this week running the rule over goalkeeper Kelle Roos, an 18-year-old Dutchman who is expected to be released by PSV Eindhoven.

Bradbury has also invited Wigan stopper Callum Williams, 18, and Manchester United’s Northern Ireland under-21 goalkeeper Conor Devlin to train with Cherries.