York Knights have suffered a big injury blow, with veteran Paul McShane set for a spell on the sidelines.
The former Man of Steel has been such a vital member of their maiden Super League squad this year, with his versatility, leadership and experience proving pivotal to Mark Applegarth’s side.
However, after a knock picked up in training, the hooker will miss this week’s game against Bradford Bulls, and further games after that.
Applegarth confirmed the news to the press, saying: “A bit of news for you. ‘Macca’ won’t be playing.
“He’s got a bit of a calf injury so he’ll be out for, I think it’ll be between three and five weeks depending on how he responds to treatment.
“…He just caught it in training. We’ve caught it nice and early, but it’s really important we look after a player such as that.
“I’d rather him miss two or three games than risk it and it goes up to missing eight or nine games.
Luckily for the Knights, they have two very accomplished hookers in Tom Inman and Denive Balmforth who can slot in in his absence.
“I thought Tom was excellent [against Catalans Dragons]. Never in doubt, I admire everything about the man.
“…We knew exactly what we were getting with Tom, because he caused us all sorts of headaches last year when he was playing for Halifax, especially in that semi-final we played.
“Denive’s on loan from Hull. He’s been a pleasure to work with, and they both played together at Warrington, and I think they complement each other really well.”
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