Former Huddersfield Giants prop Matty English was set to make his York Knights debut this weekend, but an injury in midweek stopped that from happening.
English left the Giants earlier this week, signing for the Knights on loan for the rest of the season. That move will become permanent upon the expiry of his contract, and he will then be a permanent York player until the end of 2028.
However, his time in North Yorkshire has got off to the worst possible start, and the 28-year-old will now have to wait to make his maiden appearance for his new side.
Boss Mark Applegarth explained the injury, detailing what happened to prevent the former England Knights player from playing a part in the victory over St Helens.
He explained: “He trained fully at the start of the week, and then we were doing captain’s run and he’s just gone over on his knee with no one around him.
“We’re hoping it’s just a bit of a posterior capsular, so the medical team tell me. We’re hoping it’s that, but we’ll scan him on Monday.”
Injuries where players go down untouched are never a good sign, with those tending to be more long-term problems such as ACL and Achilles issues, however the side are confident that English won’t be out for the long-term.
The boss continued: “I’m gutted for Matty. He was in tears, bless him. We did the fitness assessment at 3pm, but it’s also really important that we do the right thing by the player, too.
“The last thing we need, we’re trying to get that team-first mentality, is someone playing at 50%.
“We’re gutted for Matty. I’ve been trying to sign Matty for three years, four years since I were at my previous club.
“I’m really glad that we’ve got him. We’ll get him back, rehabbed, and hopefully it’s a short-term one and not anything more long-term.”
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