Brett Hodgson has provided an injury update on Josh Reynolds and Joe Cator after picking up injuries in Saturday’s Hull Derby win, as well as looking ahead to tomorrow’s clash with Castleford.
Hodgson has confirmed that both players are expected to miss the remainder of the 2021 season having sustained serious injuries in the victory over the Robins, with the pair both requiring surgery in the coming days.
However, Hodgson remains confident in his side going into tomorrow’s game, and is determined to see his side use the confidence of last weekend’s win to their advantage at the MKM Stadium.
Speaking in his pre-match press conference, brought to you in association with Jacuzzi, Hodgson said: “Unfortunately for both Joe Cator and the squad, it’s the worst case scenario. He has ruptured his Achilles and will be going in for an operation on Tuesday.
“It’s a huge blow for both the team and himself; he was performing exceptionally well. It’ll be a big gap to fill. He’s upset as you can imagine, but we’ll get around him and make sure he is supported.”
He added: “For Josh Reynolds, he is also going to require an operation that is going to leave him out of action for some time – his medial ligament has fully detached in the tackle.
“There wasn’t any intent from the Hull KR player, but it was a nasty tackle in the way he fell onto his knee. His operation will be next week and his recuperation will begin shortly after.
“He is devastated – he has loved been out there so far in 2021 and pulling on that shirt to represent the club alongside his teammates. We’ll get around him too and make sure he’s good to go next season.”
Despite the loss of two key players, including Reynolds in Hull’s stand-off spot, Hodgson says he has options to fill the gaps, with FC also boosted by the return of Chris Satae this week.
“We have a few options in terms of that half-back spot, with moving Jake Connor back there with Jamie Shaul coming back, and Ben McNamara too. Ben has waited for his chance in the wings and he will put this hand up, and with Shaully being back, that gives us variations.
“Having Chris Satae back is a huge boost – he struggled with Covid recently but he adds so much on the field for us. He is a great character and we know what he is capable of being a real threat for us over the next few weeks.”
Looking ahead to the game, Hodgson believes his side can use the confidence from last week’s victory to their advantage, while analysing the threats that the Tigers pose.
“There’s been a real bounce around the place this week after Saturday’s win and finally getting a positive result. But we’re coming up against another good side who have won three on the bounce. We have prepared well because they’re nipping at our heels for a play-off spot. It’s like a semi-final come early.
“This game is just as big as the derby; we need to take the confidence from last week and put it into another big performance.
“They’re getting back to near enough their strongest team. The played well in the first-half against Wakefield last week before taking their foot off the gas a little bit, and against St Helens they were brilliant, as well as beating Leeds before that.
“Our ruck control needs to be good to control guys like Evalds, McShane, Richardson and O’Brien – if we can do that, it’ll go a long way to helping us get a result.”
And on the influence that an electric atmosphere can have on the side, he said: “We’re tying to put the steps in place to make our home form really positive, and the support we received on Saturday goes a long way towards that. There haven’t been many games in my career with an atmosphere like that – it was phenomenal.”
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