Round five of Super League certainly did not pass without its injury concerns with a raft of players picking up issues over the round.
Super League has been blighted by injuries so far with key players at most clubs being ruled out for various lengths of time.
Wigan were missing two of their stars in Bevan French and Jai Field but they managed to just about edge out York Knights at the Brick Community Stadium, winning 23-22. They remain unbeaten and sit at the top of the table, two points ahead of their nearest challengers Warrington Wolves, who have only played four games but have also picked up maximum points so far after seeing off Castleford Tigers 72-6 on Saturday afternoon.
St Helens, Bradford Bulls and Wakefield Trinity were winners on Friday night, before Hull KR fell to another Super League defeat on Saturday, this time losing to Catalans Dragons at the Stade Gilbert Brutus.
Hull FC wrapped up the weekend with a 24-16 win over Leeds Rhinos at the MKM Stadium, too, with that game fortunately passing without an obvious injury concern.
Here’s a look at those who did pick up a problem in round five though.
Super League injuries after round five
We’ll start with York Knights, who could now be set to lose veteran Paul McShane for the next few weeks due a hand injury. Mark Applegarth was speaking before McShane had been for an X-ray, but he did outline fears of a fracture and depending how bad the break is, it could rule him out long-term.
Pierre-Jean Lima and James Roumanos both picked up issues for Toulouse Olympique, while George Whitby failed a HIA just minutes after stepping into the fray for St Helens in the south of France on Friday night.
Bradford Bulls were without Rowan Milnes on Friday due to an Achilles concern but he hasn’t been ruled out of Thursday’s clash with Castleford Tigers.
However, Joe Stimson looks set to miss that game for the Tigers after failing a HIA in the loss to Warrington Wolves.
Leigh Leopards boss Adrian Lam outlined his optimism regarding the injuries Robbie Mulhern and Owen Trout picked up against Wakefield Trinity, with Mulhern suffering a forearm issue and Trout reporting ankle pain.
Warrington Wolves’ Liam Byrne took a blow to the head in the game against Castleford and had to leave the field but whether he passed or failed his HIA was not confirmed.
Catalans picked up their most impressive win of the season by far in beating KR, but it seems to have come at a price with four players leaving the field through injury on the night. Josh Allen and Julian Bousquet both failed HIAs and will miss the clash with Hull FC, while Matthieu Laguerre suffered a lower leg injury and Lewis Dodd was visibly struggling with his knee.
