Leigh sign Hull FC ace Curtis Naughton following James Clare injury setback

GETTY

Leigh have signed Curtis Naughton

Former Castleford winger Clare signed for Neil Jukes’ side from Bradford following their recent financial meltdown and appeared set to play a key role for the Centurions this term.

But he may not play at all this season because of a serious knee injury and has joined full-back Gregg McNally, ruled out for up to 12 weeks with an ankle problem, on the sidelines.

Jukes has therefore moved to sign Naughton, a full-back or winger, on a season-long loan deal.

Centurions boss Jukes said: “Unfortunately James has his scan result back which shows he has a cruciate ligament injury. As the scan is worse than we expected this will rule him out for most if not all of the season.

“This is in addition to losing Gregg McNally for between 10 to 12 weeks after his injury in the Wigan game.

“It was vitally important that we acted upon the situation and certainly given that we were already a bit light in the outside backs area. We were in danger of losing that edge of competition for places in that area which is vital in all departments.

“We shall continue to support James through this difficult time but it was important that we kept those qualities within the squad and Curtis’ signing ensures that.”

Naughton, who made his Super League debut for Bradford in the final game of the 2013 season, spent 2014 with Sydney Roosters’ Under-20s side before joining Hull for the start of the 2015 campaign.

Original Article