Mark Percival set for St Helens return as Nene Macdonald injury prognosis shared

St Helens look set to welcome star centre Mark Percival back into their 17 for the first time this year – but Nene Macdonald could miss the trip to Castleford Tigers on Saturday. 

The Saints are suffering a huge early-season injury crisis that has seen them lose a string of key players for lengthy periods. That trend continued on Saturday against Bradford, with Jacob Host suffering a broken leg that assistant coach Eamon O’Carroll confirmed will rule him out for four months.

George Delaney will also miss the Challenge Cup clash at the Tigers this weekend due to a head knock suffered against the Bulls, in the tackle that saw Elliot Peposhi sent off.

And Macdonald looks set to join that list for this weekend at least after he underwent scans to determine the severity of a knee injury.

O’Carroll said: “The notable new injuries are Jacob Host who unfortunately broke his leg.. he’s gone in for surgery today. We think it’s gone well but he’ll be out about four months. I don’t think we saw the best of him yet, but he and his family have settled in to the club well. It’s a real shame for him.”

“We had George Delaney with the HIA so he’ll be missing, and we’re now getting some investigation done into Nene that’s been grumbling on for a bit. He’s had some imaging done, we’ll get the results later today (Tuesday).”

But Percival’s wait for a first appearance of 2026 appears set to come to an end.

“Percy was in the squad last week and he’ll be in contention,” O’Carroll said. “Jake Wingfield is there too. We’ve got some bodies back training.

“Anyone with the quality of Percy, not just what he does on the field but off it, having him back in is a real boost. It’s important he plays at the right time. He’s looking really good and he’ll be a great addition if he plays this weekend.”

O’Carroll admitted it was a difficult period for the Saints with so many stars out – Joe Shorrocks also begins a two-game ban this weekend – but insisted they remain confident heading across the Pennines to face Castleford.

He said: “We have full trust in the group. We have a squad and we’re getting tested early on in terms of our numbers but we’ve got a capable squad.”