Featherstone Rovers double injury blow sees them dip into loan market
Photo: John Clifton/SWpix
Championship leaders Featherstone Rovers have signed promising forward Sam Eseh on a season-long loan from Super League side Wakefield.
The young prop with link up with Brian McDermott’s squad with immediate effect.
Eseh could make his debut in Thursday’s Bank Holiday clash with full-time side Newcastle Thunder.
He impressed McDermott when he played for Barrow in their 1895 Cup semi-final defeat to Rovers earlier this month.
McDermott said: “He’s a big powerful forward who caused us some problems when we played against him.
“It’s an area of the squad we’ve been keen to add to for some time and Sam is an intelligent solution.”
Featherstone have been dealt a double injury blow to forward pair James Lockwood and Craig Kopczak following Saturday’ 1895 Cup final defeat to Leigh.
Lockwood is likely to miss a month of action having broken his hand. Former Wales captain Kopczak is also nursing an injury.
Wakefield have a recall option on Eseh should they need his services before the end of the season.
Brian McDermott reacts to Featherstone Rovers 1895 Cup final defeat
Featherstone coach Brian McDermott believes his side will learn lessons from their defeat to Leigh in the 1895 Cup semi-final.
The Rovers lost 30-16 to the Centurions in a battle of the promotion-chasing Championship heavyweights at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Speaking after the game, McDermott said: “It stopped becoming a contest for the final 15. Up to that point we were well in the contest but we never had a grip of it.
“They’ve got some strengths and some really big boys. We handled them for a while but not for the final 15.
“It is disappointing but we will play them another few times this year and it gives us real clarity where we need to be better.
“It is a learning experience but I’m not sure its a good one.
“Without getting too romantic about it, we put a lot of effort into that and we desperately wanted to win so there are some upset people in the changing rooms but the reaction could be valuable.
“If there is a reaction, not just in what we did physically but how we knock our next plan together, a loss like that can be really helpful.”
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