What's behind Super League's injury crisis?

Since the turn of the month, Super League's injury crisis has worsened. Wigan's talisman Bevan French was ruled out for four months with a hamstring tear, giving boss Matt Peet a headache at full-back as French was injured while covering the position for Jai Field, who has appendicitis. In fact full-back is seemingly a vulnerable position of late, with Warrington's Cai Taylor-Wray injured in training, Hull FC's Will Pryce and Castleford's Blake Taaffe both out for the year while Leigh's Bailey Hodgson is also out for a significant period.

Huddersfield, however, have been hit hard in the early stages of the season and described their situation as "unprecedented" last week. The Giants were further depleted by the news that George Flanagan Jr and Matty English face lengthy spells on the sidelines. It is not only injuries which are the cause of some early season squad rotation but suspensions too.

Hull KR's Karl Lawton was suspended for three games earlier this month for a Grade E dangerous contact charge, while Bradford Bulls duo Eliot Peposhi and Loghan Lewis were given three-game and two-game bans, respectively, for incidents in their narrow defeat at St Helens. Meanwhile, Saints, who have also lost Jacob Host with a broken leg, face having to plan around free-scoring Kyle Feldt's absence after he was banned for three games as of this week for a Grade E charge of his own. Speaking to BBC Radio Manchester before last week's Challenge Cup tie against Bradford, Wigan boss Peet was pragmatic about losing French and Field.

"It's par for the course when you look across the league," he said. "That's why no teams get carried away when they're playing well or they try and keep on track when these periods hit because that is the nature of the sport and the Super League season. " These sentiments were echoed by St Helens assistant Eamon O'Carroll while Warrington boss Sam Burgess actually views Taylor-Wray's absence as an opportunity.