Hip injury may bring Danny Brough’s Wakefield Trinity career to an early end

VETERAN HALF-BACK Danny Brough could have played his last game for Wakefield Trinity.
Wakefield Trinity's Danny Brough.
 Picture: Jonathan Gawthorpe.Wakefield Trinity's Danny Brough.
 Picture: Jonathan Gawthorpe.
Wakefield Trinity's Danny Brough. Picture: Jonathan Gawthorpe.

Brough, 37, who is in his second spell at the club, is out of contract at the end of this season and will join Bradford Bulls in 2021 to begin a two-year deal.

Coach Chris Chester revealed Brough needs surgery on a hip and will be unavailable when Trinity restart their Betfred Super League season on the weekend of August 8/9.

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“We don’t know,” Chester said of whether Brough will be fit before the end of the season in November.

Wakefield Trinity head coach, Chris Chester. Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWpix.comWakefield Trinity head coach, Chris Chester. Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWpix.com
Wakefield Trinity head coach, Chris Chester. Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWpix.com

“He needs a clean out on it and it’s two to three months.

“If it is the latter that pretty much rules him out for the year.”

Brough suffered a knee injury in Trinity’s Super League round one defeat at Hull KR in January, but made his comeback when they beat Bradford in a Challenge Cup tie on March 13, their final game before rugby league was suspended because of Covid-19.

Chester said: “It’s one that’s been irritating and bothering him for a number of weeks. We just haven’t been able to get him in.

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“With the coronavirus there’s no hospital beds and players haven’t been able to get any kind of surgeries.

“He will get that done sooner rather than later, but we are still waiting on a date from the specialist.

“We will have to wait and see what happens and what the severity is, but it gives a good opportunity for people like Ryan Hampshire and Connor Bailey to stake a claim for that half-back spot.”

Trinity will resume training on July 20 and Chester said: “I’ll be ringing the players [today] and letting them know which players will be coming back.

“We are going to bring 24 players back on the 20th.

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“Joe Arundel will be staying at home, he is three or four months into an acl [anterior cruciate ligament injury].

“Adam Tangata (shoulder) probably won’t be ready for the first game.”

Ben Jones-Bishop, who has not played this year due to illness, is waiting to see a specialist. Chester said: “He was due to go the Monday after everybody got put in lockdown; we have just been waiting and waiting. We are hopeful he can start on the 20th, once he gets the okay.”