Wigan Warriors captain Sean O'Loughlin could return for Super League playoffs
Monday 5 August 2019 13:39, UK
Wigan Warriors captain Sean O'Loughlin could return before the end of the Super League season after avoiding surgery on a pectoral injury.
O'Loughlin, who is also England's skipper, was making his return from a calf injury during Wigan's 15-14 victory over Hull FC on Thursday, but was swiftly forced off when suffered the new strain.
Wigan predict the 36-year-old will miss six-to-eight weeks of action, which means that he is unlikely to return for the final league game of the season against Castleford on September 13, but could be available for the playoffs, which begin the following and end in October.
"Losing a player of Sean's influence and ability will always be tough to take," said Warriors head coach Adrian Lam.
"Yet the silver lining to this is that we should be welcoming him back into the fold as we look to make the play-offs at the end of the season.
"It's up to us now as a unit to maintain our upward trajectory in recent weeks by securing a play-off berth to welcome Sean back into the squad."
With five games of the Super League season remaining, Wigan currently occupy fourth place, meaning they would be one of the five teams to advance to the playoffs.
