The latest injury news from Hull FC.
Hull FC loose-forward John Asiata.
Hull FC will be without loose-forward John Asiata for this Saturday’s Super League opener against Bradford Bulls. The Black and Whites take on the Super League newcomers at the MKM Stadium, with Asiata continuing to be managed as he recovers from a significant hamstring layoff.
The 32-year-old had some hefty surgery at the end of last season, with the club opting not to risk the player until they are ‘comfortable’ that the muscle is 100% and ready to go.
Elsewhere, Jed Cartwright is ruled out after copping a head knock at Salford last week, with Herman Ese’ese targeting an April return against Hull KR after rupturing his Achilles. James Bell is still managing a knee injury picked up in pre-season.
“I’m not going to put a timeframe on any of those guys, but it’s safe to say it will be earlier in the season rather than later,” Cartwright said when asked about Asiata and Bell. “We’re hopeful that within the first four games that we’ll have most people available apart from Herman.”
On Asiata, Cartwright continued: “He’s not far away. Mentally he’s in a strong place. He’s a tough fella, and he’s been through a lot of injuries during his career. He knows we’re going to do the absolute best for him. As soon as his leg is 100% right and we’ve got no doubt about him, he’ll be back in.”
The head coach also confirmed that Cartwright will be back in contention for the Super League round two game at Wigan Warriors next week, so long as he passes all of his return-to-play protocols.
“He’s doing the concussion protocols now,” Cartwright said. “He’s passed everything so far, but he’s got one more test to do to make sure he’s available for the Wigan game.”
Elsewhere, Cartwright confirmed that the trio Will Pryce, Lewis Martin and Liam Knight will be fit and available to face Bradford. Pryce missed the game at Salford due to a tight hamstring, while Martin had a minor hip complaint. Knight suffered a head knock in training prior to the Wigan game and has now passed all of his subsequent checks.
“Will is good,” Cartwright added. “It was only precautionary to leave him out. He’s 100% and ready to go. Lewis is fine, and Liam is also fine.
“We’re ticking along okay. We had a training session today (Wednesday). We’ve got another one to go before the game on Saturday.”
Hull have also been without Logan Moy (calf), Joe Phillips (leg), Ryan Westerman (foot), and Roman Dawson (ACL). However, it’s hoped that some of that quartet will be passed fit to play for the reserves against London on Saturday.