Wakefield Trinity captain won't rush return from injury

Trinity skipper Danny Kirmond insists he will not rush himself back into action following a potentially season-ending knee injury.
Danny Kirmond.Danny Kirmond.
Danny Kirmond.

The 32-year-old underwent knee surgery last Wednesday and is now expected to be out for at least three months.

And while the Wakefield captain is keen to get back on the field as soon as possible, he is wary that an early return could cause more long-term problems.

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“It is a weird one really because when I went down I wasn’t expecting to be out for eight weeks,” said Kirmond.

“But then the diagnosis afterwards said it would be about three to four months and that will take us to the cusp of the end of the season.

“It is one of those, I have got to look after myself and train as hard as I can and that is what I would’ve been doing anyway.

“And if I do manage to get a couple of games at the end of the year that will be a bonus.

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“But I am not really giving myself any unrealistic goals either because that will make it worse in the long run.

“I am just going to take it week by week, I have pushed myself too hard before with injuries and that has just made them worse.”

Kirmond also expressed his disappointment after Wakefield were narrowly beaten by St Helens last Friday evening.

Wakefield came from 20-6 down to lead 20-26 before the league leaders produced a fightback of their own to claim the points.

Kirmond said: “It was really disappointing.

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“I think that everyone worked so hard and the way that we played, especially in that second half, we deserved something from the game.

“I am not one to blame decisions or anything like that but we had a few that went against us and they hurt us in the end.”

It is the seventh time this season that Wakefield have lost a league game by less than six points.

But Kirmond feels that the nature of those defeats highlights how much the club has progressed in recent years.

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He said: “I just think it shows how far we’ve come this year, we have been so close in a lot of games.

“And I know that we have lost quite a few games but we have not really been heavily beaten by anyone.

“No one has put us to the sword and made us look like an average team.

“We know that if we can turn those narrow losses into wins then we really are a top-four team and that’s where we should be challenging.”

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Trinity host in-form Catalans Dragons this weekend, who go into Saturday’s game (6.30pm) on the back of a convincing 44-16 win over Castleford Tigers.

Wakefield won the reverse fixture between the sides at the end of February but Kirmond believes the Dragons are now a much better side compared to a few months ago.

He added: “The important thing now is for us to bounce back.

“Every week that we have had a disappointing defeat we have always tried to bounce back really well.

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“The way the boys have trained this week has been really encouraging and they have been working really hard.

“The top four have started to pull away a little bit so it’s important we pick some wins up before we move into the Super 8s.

“Catalans is going to be a tough one, they are playing some great stuff at the minute.

“A few months ago everyone would’ve been tipping them for the bottom two but they have really bonded under Steve McNamara.

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“They look like a team that will probably get into that top eight and trouble a few teams if they do get there.

“For us, and, since I have been here, it has always been a case of improving year on year.

“If you look at the league this year, the table probably told a bit of a lie last season if you see the teams that struggled, like Warrington and Wigan.

“Where we are at the moment is probably goal achieved.

“We would like to be higher and to push into that top four, we want to be playing play-off rugby at the end of the year and that is the ultimate goal and we are driven towards doing that.”