Leeds Rhinos have suffered a disappointing injury blow after Tom Holroyd was ruled out of the opening months of the season.
The young forward has suffered a syndesmosis injury that will see him undergo surgery and miss up to 12 weeks of action.
The injury was suffered in the pre-season victory over Featherstone Rovers and is Holroyd's second serious pre-season injury in as many years after fracturing his leg last year.
It's an unwanted blow for Leeds, who were keen to add a further prop to their pack for depth but were ultimately unable to do so. Holroyd's absence will further test the depth of their pack in the opening rounds of the season.
"Tom was a little bit of a worst-case scenario for us really," head coach Richard Agar said.
"He's suffered syndesmosis and he's got some separation in there. The decision has been made to get him operated on, it's scheduled to take place next Tuesday and we're looking at a 12-week rehabilitation although we're pretty confident that if the surgery is successful we can perhaps shave a week or two off that.
"So it's tough on Tommy, he got an injury, a crack in his leg in pre-season tome last year which affected him in the start. He's been travelling great pre-season and in his first hitout unfortunately for Tommy it's going to set him back at the start of the season and we'll definitely miss him.
"We know he'll get terrific medical care and we can get him back fighting fit for those early rounds."
