Rugby League: Saints Anxious Over Dodd’s Potential Serious Arm Injury
St Helens are on tenterhooks as they await the results of scans on half-back Lewis Dodd’s potentially serious arm injury sustained during their thrilling extra-time victory over Salford Red Devils on Thursday night.
Dodd was forced off the field midway through the second half, leaving the Saints with just one recognized senior half-back, Moses Mbye, available for the upcoming Magic Weekend clash with local rivals Wigan Warriors.
Head coach Paul Wellens expressed his concern over the nature of Dodd’s injury, stating, “> Lewis has a bit of an arm injury that we’re going to need to get scanned. We think it might be ligament-type damage, but we won’t know any more until we get those medical assessments.”
The loss of Dodd, who is set to join the NRL next year, would leave the Saints in a genuine crisis, with Jonny Lomax still serving a suspension and Jack Welsby sidelined for the foreseeable future. This would severely limit their pivot options heading into the crucial derby match.
However, there was some positive news for the Saints, as Daryl Clark passed his HIA after being forced off for the entirety of extra-time. Wellens was also hopeful that Agnatius Paasi had passed his HIA, but a confusion over the use of an instrumented mouthguard meant he was automatically ruled out of the remainder of the game.
Wellens acknowledged the need to address the issue surrounding the mouthguard rule, stating, “> That’s a discussion I’m going to have to have with the medical staff and Agnatius around how we can avoid that happening again. It’s an unfortunate one, particularly with where we are at.”
As St Helens await the results of Dodd’s scans, the club will be keeping a close eye on the fitness of their key players ahead of the crucial Magic Weekend showdown against Wigan Warriors.
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