Wigan Warriors boss Matt Peet confirms long-term injury blow to off-season recruit as team-mate’s return delayed
Sam Walters - Alamy
Wigan Warriors head coach Matt Peet has this afternoon confirmed new signing Sam Walters has suffered a broken collarbone, and could be set for three months on the sidelines.
The 23-year-old was forced off in Wigan’s 40-0 pre-season win at Hull FC over the weekend having featured from the interchange bench in the second half.
Post-match at the MKM Stadium, Peet detailed that the problem was with Walters’ collarbone, and that it looked a ‘substantial’ one.
And speaking to Wigan Today at the 2024 Super League launch in Manchester earlier today, Peet explained how his worst fears had rung true.
The Warriors boss said: “He’s broken his collarbone. He’s going to get a second scan to find out if he needs an operation or not.
“We’ll not know the complete timescale, but it’s probably looking around the three month area if he needs an operation.
“If he doesn’t need an operation, it may be a little bit less.”
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Wigan Warriors boss Matt Peet confirms long-term injury blow to off-season recruit Sam Walters
Walters’ move to the DW Stadium from Leeds Rhinos was confirmed back in June, with the towering Widnes-born ace penning a three-year deal with the Cherry & Whites.
The 23-year-old is just one of five forwards signed by the reigning Super League champions ahead of the new campaign, the only back that’s been recruited being Adam Keighran from Catalans Dragons.
And Peet utilised Walters’ injury as evidence of why such recruitment is needed to be successful, as he said: “People talked about how many forwards we’ve got and a lot of people have said to me during pre-season, ‘How are you going to keep them all happy?’
“But we know what kind of squad we need and we know the numbers we need.
“We know the challenges this competition puts on your squad and this is a prime example of it.”
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Warriors hit with another injury problem as Junior Nsemba’s return delayed
Elsewhere, another young forward in Junior Nsemba has now been ruled out until April, a later return than first expected.
Back in December, as part of a wider injury update, Wigan confirmed that the 19-year-old had undergone surgery in the off-season.
The ex-Whitehaven man was expected back by the end of this month, but will now be a couple of months behind schedule, revealed by Peet in the same interview with Wigan Today this morning.
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