Asiata may be injured – but he still has a role to play on the field.
John Asiata is still set to play a big role for Hull FC this season, with Simon Grix suggesting he could be seen on the field again at some stage.
That won’t be as a player, with the loose-forward ruled out for the rest of the year with a ‘significant’ hamstring injury – his second of the season after pulling up against Leigh Leopards in just his second game back from a 12-week layoff – but as a trainer.
Doing anything he can to support and aid the team, Asiata’s impact off the field has been as great as it has been on it, and Hull are keen to utilise that influence.
“Johnny will find ways to get himself involved,” Grix said. “We’ll make him busy. We’ll get him out in the blue shirt, hopefully, in the not-too-distant future when his leg is okay again.
“He can add some value on game day, but he brings plenty off the field to our group. He holds the lads together and he’s a really calming influence. We need to make sure that is still around us.
“He missed a significant chunk of this year and he didn’t just sit on the sideline sulking. Injuries happen, unfortunately, and the older you are, and although they hurt, you get over them as you know it’s part of it. You’ve got to get on with it and add some value and he did that in the 10-12 weeks he was missing. We expect nothing different now.”
After victory over Leigh, Hull head to St Helens on Friday night still in the driving seat for a Super League play-off finish. But with some big injury blows, including Will Pryce and Liam Watts, they know they need to roll their sleeves up again now and show the same desire and grit that has earned them their plaudits all year – characteristics Grix highlighted after the 18-12 win.
“That added to the win,” he said of that character. “Losing Prycey so early and Johnny, who is such a pivotal player and who would be important to any team in the competition. Losing our captain too in Sezer and Rapana, everyone goes through it, but I thought a lot happened within the game and a lot of blokes were shuffled around and we showed the togetherness that has been evident since pre-season and through every round.
“We dragged each other through – you could see that in the dying minutes when people were running around and absolutely out on their feet. They were desperate to make sure we didn’t concede.”
Hull are hoping for some timely boosts ahead of Friday’s game, with Sezer hoping to come back into the side alongside Rapana and Ed Chamberlain. Matty Laidlaw too is likely to feature, but regardless, there’s confidence in those who will take to the field in Merseyside with the squad operating a next man up mentality.
Grix added: “We’ve got a tough fixture over at Saints now and they’re in good form, but I’m really confident that whoever is in those black and white or blue jerseys, whichever one we’re playing in, I know they’ll do a job.”