Castleford Tigers suffer major blow with Paul McShane timeframe revealed plus update on alternative options, including Jacques O’Neill
Castleford Tigers have confirmed a major injury blow to captain Paul McShane, with an update issued on alternatives including Jacques O’Neill.
Andy Last’s side fell to a 42-10 defeat to the Red Devils last Friday at the Mend-A-Hose Jungle.
The 33-year-old was forced from the field and taken to Pinderfields Hospital for further treatment, with Castleford’s head physiotherapist, Matty Crowther, providing an update.
“Macca has a fractured forearm so he will need an operation and will see a specialist tomorrow morning,” Crowther said.
“From that, they will make a prognosis but to make an estimate on how long he will be out for, it will probably be around eight weeks and we will be working closely with him to aid his recovery.”
The club also provided an update on utility O’Neill, who returned to Castleford earlier this season following his stint on Love Island.
O’Neill, 24, previously played for the Tigers from 2019 to 2022 before leaving the club to appear on ITV’s hit reality show.
He later returned to the Jungle in April on a contract until the end of 2023.
Castleford provide Jacques O’Neill update
“Jacques is a bit away from getting on the field at the moment,” Crowther added.
“We are working closely with him to try and get him more mobile.
“Since leaving the Tigers in 2021 with an injury, his career took him to a completely different line of work and coming back into a tough environment is a hard ask.
“We’ve got to try and make him as durable as possible to get him back into a Super League playing environment again.”
Meanwhile, the club have confirmed that playmaker Callum McLelland has suffered a further setback on his return to recovery.
The 23-year-old Scotland international is yet to make an appearance for Castleford, suffering two years of injuries since his move from Leeds in 2022.
Crowther confirmed: “Unfortunately, Cal has hit another stumbling block on his return. We are currently assessing him.”
Castleford centre Mahe Fonua was another casualty from last Friday’s Super League loss to Paul Rowley’s Red Devils, with a timeframe yet to be determined due to the number of head knocks suffered in recent times.
The off-contract 30-year-old failed his head injury assessment. Crowther added: “Mahe has got to go and see a specialist with his concussion from the other day because he’s had a couple in the last year.
“How long he will be out will be dependent on what the specialist’s prognosis is.”
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