St Helens forward’s injury nightmare may soon be over

Matty Foster’s nightmare may soon be over! The injury-jinxed Saints second row forward has only featured in one Super League match as an interchange substitute against Salford Red Devils in October 2020 and since then has faced an uphill battle to regain full fitness from an ACL injury.

Now there seems to be light at the end of what has been a long tunnel and a place in the 21-man squad to face Hull KR on Friday suggests better times are just around the corner.

Head coach Paul Wellens said: "Matty has had rotten luck in the past couple of years but having now  played in our reserves and on loan at Swinton, it will have been invaluable to him moving forward. He is a keen and enthusiastic kid and keeps knocking on my office door desperate for a first team opportunity."

Wellens isn’t ruling out a call-up this season for the 22-year-old, but insisted at this moment in time he will have to show a little more patience.

Matty Lees two-match suspension for a high tackle in last Sunday’s home game against Huddersfield Giants opened the door for 20-year-old Wesley Bruines to be added to the 20-man squad initially named to face Hull KR on Friday (kick-off 8pm).

St Helens squad: 1. Jack Welsby, 2. Tommy Makinson, 4. Mark Percival, 5. Jon Bennison, 6. Jonny Lomax, 7. Lewis Dodd, 9. James Roby, 11. Sione Mata’utia, 12. Joe Batchelor, 13. Morgan Knowles, 15. Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook, 19. James Bell, 20. Dan Norman, 21. Ben Davies, 22. Sam Royle, 24. Lewis Baxter, 25. Tee Ritson, 28. Matthew Foster, 30. George Delaney, 34. Wesley Bruines, 35. Moses Mbye.