Josh Griffin reflects on missing out on England opportunity and the other challenges his injury caused

Injuries are unfortunately a common yet heart breaking aspect of professional sport. They are something all athletes have to expect but seek to avoid.

In 2021, many Super League clubs had to deal with plenty of injuries perhaps due to the way the pandemic forced more games in short periods of time and disrupted pre-season.

Hull FC were one of those side who had to deal with their fair share of injuries with the likes of Josh Reynolds having to face season ending injuries. But perhaps the most memorable and most tragic injury was the torn achilles suffered by Josh Griffin.

Griffin was having a brilliant season and was touted as a potential England centre with the World Cup on the horizon however he went down injured in the Challenge Cup semi-final against St Helens and in doing so handed a try to Theo Fages.

In an interview on the club’s Twitter page, Griffin outlined the trials and tribulations he faced both mentally and physically during his recovery: “It was out of the blue for me, it’s not something I’ve struggled with previously. It was an awkward step off my right foot and unfortunately I tore my achilles.

“I was really emotional after and it took some getting used it. I knew straight away how severe the injury was and I’d not long been told that I was probably going to be playing for England the week after, so I had that to deal with that and you throw in the dropped ball and the way that went about and the stuff that came up on social media. It was a hard couple of days.

“I had a lot of help from the boys, Josh Reynolds and Jordan Johnstone they were outstanding and I can’t knock their effort, they were really helpful.”

🤕 On June 5th, Josh Griffin suffered a season-ending Achilles tear. 💔

🎥 We've followed him throughout his challenging and emotional road to recovery as he prepares to return to action in 2022…

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— Hull FC (@hullfcofficial) December 30, 2021

Griffin may have praised his teammates for their help during some tough times as he spent over two weeks unable to even get out of bed, but he himself now is a beacon of hope for his teammates.

Bizarrely two more members of Hull’s 2022 squad are recovering from achilles injuries with new signing Darnell McIntosh joining the club after rupturing his achilles against the Black and Whites for Huddersfield whilst Joe Cator is also recovering after suffering the same injury against rivals Hull KR.

Cator also spoke on Hull’s Twitter page noting how he’s used Griffin as inspiration during some tough times: “It was kind of a freak accident, I think all achilles are. I stepped back and pushed off and I knew straight away what it was.

“I try to level where I’m at where he was at so I’m always trying to go ‘week 14 he was at this stage so at week 14 I want to get to that stage.’ But it’s also about trying not to get ahead of yourself because it’s a six-nine month injury.

“If I rush this then it’s going to affect my full career so I need to make sure this is right before I get back.”