Sharp seeking hooker combination

Featherstone Rovers coach Jon Sharp believes hookers Andy Ellis and Robbie Ward can work well in tandem after the latter joined the club for the rest of the season.

Former Leeds hooker Ward had been playing for Melbourne Storm feeder club Sunshine Coast Falcons, but he jumped at the chance to return to Yorkshire and has already impressed Sharp.

With Ellis among the form players in the Championship, the Rovers coach believes he has a potent balance with his dummy-half options.

Sharp said: “Andy is an outstanding player but we just didn’t have any cover at nine.

“I want to keep him nice and fresh so that we can finish the year strongly. He’d been playing long minutes and that can have an impact on you at the back end of the year.

“I didn’t want to be in a vulnerable position again, like at the start of the year when I had Matty Wildie and Sam Day as my hookers and lost both.

“Robbie has come in and been impressive already.

“He arrived in this country on Tuesday and trained that night, which certainly made a statement that he’s coming here to have a real dig.

“He’s very quick and direct and is fit and good to go.

“Along with Andy, who’s a really good footballer, he will give us an attacking balance that I think will be difficult to defend against.”

Ward himself says he has two main goals, to help Featherstone into the top four, and to get himself back into Super League at some point.

This article originally appeared in League Express.