SALFORD RED DEVILS have been given a double long-term blow, with Ethan Ryan and Jayden Nikorima set to face lengthy spells on the sidelines.
Both players left the field early against Castleford Tigers last weekend with knee injuries and both will be out for months rather than weeks.
“Ethan and Jayden are both long-term, they are a couple of months out each,” coach Paul Rowley said.
“Both have got knee injuries with tendon issues in there. We will get the specialist clarity today but we are clear enough to know it’s not a short-term thing.”
Rowley went on to suggest who could replace both players.
“Nene Macdonald is an option, Chris Hankinson is another and so is Nathan Connell. They can all play fullback comfortably,” he said.
“We will see who is available and put everyone where they fit best.”
Salford will also be without George Hill, with Castleford Tigers recalling the forward from his loan spell.
“George Hill has been taken back to Castleford so we’ve lost another player there,” added Rowley.
“It’s not good for us, bit it’s good for him. I hope he gets the chance to perform well.”
Rowley did, however, feel there were positives against Castleford.
“I was happy with the chances we created. The attacking shapes in the final 20 minutes were good and we brought Nene back in as well,” Rowley said.
“There were a lot of positives in that respect but obviously we lost against Castleford.
“The lads are pretty resilient as a group. They keep going strong but we want to win games and we are clearly lacking on troops.
“It’s near impossible to keep our philosophy of being off the cuff, it’s very structured in many aspects.
“It looks free-flowing but everybody is quite specific on their roles that they play within the system.
“Without a pre-season it’s near-on impossible with positional changes week in week out.”