Stevie Ward stood down indefinitely after failing concussion protocols for three weeks

Leeds head coach Richard Agar has revealed Stevie Ward has been stood down indefinitely and will have an MRI scan on his brain.

The Rhinos skipper has not played since the opening week of the season and continues to suffer from blurred vision and dizziness.

“We’ll stand him down indefinitely until we get some more medical checks,” Agar told BBC Radio Leeds reporter James Deighton in his pre-match press conference.

“Everyone is aware of when he got his injury and he’s failed his return-to-play protocols for three weeks.

“We had him over to see Hiren Patel in Manchester who is the concussion expert there and Stevie was set some strict guidelines and how to manage himself over the seven to ten day period.

“He got through a fair bit of that feeling okay but as soon as he exercised that’s when the dizzy spells and blurred vision started again.”

Ward, who has made well over 100 appearances for his hometown club, was named Leeds captain ahead of this season.

The 26-year-old has suffered numerous setbacks in his career and Agar admitted that his condition is now a concern going forward.

“We are sending him down to London to take him up a level,” said the Rhinos coach.

“So the test now will be deeper cognitive tests, so it will be more around hearing, vision and he’ll have an MRI scan on his brain to try get a little more information.

“Because after three weeks, to still be showing the symptoms, that gives us a little more concern and he will go see a guy called Simon Kemp, who is the RFU’s main concussion man.

“It’s a tough one, it’s frustrating for us all, but it’s very much something we are going to leave in the hands of the medical experts, because it’s not something we can take lightly.”