Pryce not right for play-offs

Saints stand-off ruled out following surgery

Last updated: 7th September 2010   Subscribe to RSS Feed

Pryce not right for play-offs

Pryce: Neck problem

Having his experience in the finals would have been fantastic but it's not to be.

Mick Potter on Leon Pryce
Quotes of the week

SKY BET ODDS
St Helens are 11/4 to win the Super League Grand Final. Click here to bet now.

Related links

Teams

Players

Also see

Leon Pryce will miss St Helens' play-off campaign after being told he requires surgery on his neck injury.

The former Bradford and Great Britain stand-off has been sidelined for a month and has had his worst fears realised byb a specialist, who has advised him to go under the knife.

The 28-year-old is likely to be out for around three months and coach Mick Potter said he had predicted the news.

"There was always a that feeling that it was still there," he said. "In his own head he said he felt it just wasn't going to be right.

"Having his experience in the finals would have been fantastic but it's not to be.

"If he has the op this week, he should be right to go in early December and be fit for pre-season."

Fitness tests

Meanwhile, Potter has further worries ahead of the qualifying play-off against Warrington with half-back pair Kyle Eastmond and Jonny Lomax facing late tests.

Scrum-half Eastmond underwent tests on a hip injury on Monday while Lomax, who has been filling in for Pryce, is struggling with a quad injury.

"There is a bright future for the kid and he's doing a real good job there at six," Potter said of the latter. "His enthusiasm around the field is infectious."

Meanwhile, the coach was delighted to welcome back New Zealand international Sia Soliola last Saturday while England prop Maurie Fa'asavalu could end a three-month injury lay-off on Friday.

"He'd been training for about three weeks and had a steady build-up of contact work," he said of Soliola.

"He only got the all-clear late Thursday evening and it was a case of giving him a short run-out in this particular game rather than trying to play him the week after.

"We had no reserve game so we had to bite the bullet and it worked out well. He played about 25 minutes and I thought he acquitted himself well."

Post to your View!

Be the first to post a comment on this story

Add Comment*

Send us your views

Are you a Sky Sports subscriber?

*All fields required, your email address will be kept private