Salford captain Lee Mossop has paid tribute to Dan Sarginson after his Wembley dreams were crushed due to Covid-19.
Sarginson will miss the match after contracting the virus, robbing him of an appearance in the Final.
He has been one of Salford’s key performers in their run to a first Challenge Cup final since 1969, scoring the winning try in the Challenge Cup quarter-final victory over Catalans.
However, despite suffering his own personal tragedy, Mossop has revealed the selfless Sarginson was more concerned about him and Mark Flanagan, who had both produced inconclusive tests and were also at risk of missing the match.
“I rang Sarg and he’s got his head around it,” Mossop said.
“He was devastated at the start of the week but he was just petrified he’d passed it on to me and Mark.
“It was just a massive relief, he said he wouldn’t have forgiven himself if he’d brought it into the camp. He’s been massive for us all season and I really feel for him.
“It probably shows in the way he plays. He’s always 20 plus carries, he comes into the middle when he sees us blokes blowing, he comes in and says he’ll carry. He’s a selfless bloke. The fact he was ringing and texting us when he’d just got that devastating news was a testament to him as a bloke.”
Mossop himself had feared missing the chance at leading a side out of Wembley after two inconclusive tests.
“I’m not someone who gets fazed by much or too stressed but that’s probably the first time I haven’t slept for two nights.
“It was 48 hours of waiting seeing if you’re able to play in one of the biggest occasions in rugby league. It was awful.”
