HULL FC will continue to be cautious with John Asiata as the injury-hit side gear up for a crunch Challenge Cup fourth-round clash against the loose-forward’s former club Leigh Leopards.
Asiata, who captained Leigh to victory in the 2023 competition, joined Hull ahead of last season but was limited to 17 matches by two significant hamstring tears.
The 32-year-old made a first appearance of the season off the bench in their 17-16 defeat to York Knights, then was promoted to the starting line-up for Thursday’s 14-10 loss at Wakefield Trinity.
“He was sorely missed last year and he’s been sorely missed this year in the early part of the season,” admitted Hull coach John Cartwright.
“But we’ve got to make sure we don’t rush him. He’s had some major surgery, so we’ll keep giving him a bit extra each week.
“We’ll make sure we look after him first and foremost, and the team comes after that.
“He played 50 minutes (at Wakefield), he played 30 last week (against York), so we’ll probably look at playing him a little bit longer next week.
“It’s against Leigh and he loves the challenge of playing against his old club, so he’ll want to play 80 minutes, but we need to protect him from himself on occasions.”
Cartwright’s son, backrower Jed, has been ruled out “long-term” with the hamstring tear suffered against York, while Harvey Barron’s ankle strain in the same game will keep the winger out for at least four weeks.
Meanwhile, further light has been shed on prop Liam Knight’s decision to be released from his contract to return to Australia.
“It’s been ongoing with Liam for a while,” explained coach Cartwright.
“I’ve been chatting to him since Christmas time and he hasn’t been in a good place mentally, just being away from home.
“I could see his heart and head were not over here.”