Kallum Watkins and Carl Ablett unsure of inclusion in final line-up of Challenge Cup final
Keith Senior, who boasts a successful run as Leeds Rhinos’ centre with the most appearance and tries scored, acknowledges the rough patch Kallum Watkins and Carl Ablett are going through as their inclusion in the final show down of the Carnegie Challenge
Cup, on August 27, still cannot be determined.
Ablett had been filling in for injury hit Senior’s spot for three months. The player injured his ankle during Saturday’s embarrassing defeat of 22-32 against Harlequins, whereas Watkins also picked up a knee injury during the same fixture.
According to Leeds’ coach, Brian McDermott, Watkins injury seemed too grave when he was spotted with an dislocated knee but the detailed examination revealed that the injury was not too bad and their hopes could be clung to his return for the Challenge
Cup this Saturday.
It was further confirmed by the Watkins on the Challenge Cup media day that his injury seemed severe but "There wasn't severe damage in terms of having surgery. There is a lot of swelling in my knee. I'm 50-50 so there's still a chance I could play. I've
not had the best of luck. I'm 20 and I've had a few injuries but it's a learning process for me as a person and a player as well. It's life. I just fell on it awkwardly and banged it into the ground. It's my bad knee. It's a case of waiting and hoping."
The last two seasons of Watkins were heavily punctuated by injuries. Last year, he sat along the sidelines to see his side lose to Warrington Wolves at Wembley. This was followed by a wrist injury that had kept him off field during the initial stint of this
year.
It is expected that the duo will sail through their injuries to be part of the Saturday’s encounter in Wembley, as the 19-man squad of Leeds will be released on Thursday. However, the finalised outfit will not be released until the kick-off time of the Challenge
Cup. This will however, grant enough time to for the duo to recover fully and be part of the big game in Wembley.
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