Wed May 18, 2011
Huddersfield Giants' Australian forward Luke O'Donnell will miss the mid-season international between England and the Exiles with the hamstring injury he sustained in the warm-up to the match against St Helens at the weekend.
O'Donnell, who was one of the first names on Exiles coach Brian McClennan's teamsheet for the inaugural international Origin fixture at Headingley on June 10, has been ruled out for four to six weeks.
The former Australia Test back-row forward has already started an intense period of rehabilitation but his absence will be a blow to Huddersfield ahead of Sunday's Carnegie Challenge Cup fifth-round tie against Catalan Dragons.
However, that disappointment could be offset by the return of prop forward Keith Mason from a knee injury.
Mason, who yesterday signed a new contract taking him to the end of the 2015 season, was initially ruled out for 12 weeks after damaging his left knee against Wakefield Trinity Wildcats on April 3.
But he had his brace removed last week and will join up with the rest of the squad for full training today.
"I'm probably about four or five weeks ahead of schedule," he said.
Huddersfield will also be without centre Joe Wardle for Sunday's cup tie after he sustained a minor hamstring injury in the 40-18 win over St Helens.
Sat May 14, 2011
Source: www.giantsrl.comNathan Brown previews the Engage Super League XVI clash against St Helens at the Galpharm Stadium on Saturday (5pm) and insisted he will be looking for his troops to lift the intensity against Royce Simmons side.
The Giants were unconvincing in victory over Batley Bulldogs in last week's Carnegie Challenge Cup fourth round tie and Brown is looking for a much improved display against the side who are level on points with the claret and gold;
"It's been well documented that we were disappointed with our effort levels and our performance in general last week. We've generally fared pretty well against the clubs higher up in the Super League this season and clearly we are hoping that's the case again this week against very good opposition.
"For us as a club, beating the top sides is a part of our development and St Helens will come here with plenty of Internationals right through their side. They are such a strong club and they have shown through the Easter period that despite having to cope with their fair share of injuries they have come through and done pretty well, which is a big indicator of their strength."
Despite a host of injuries in the first half of the campaign, Saints remain in touching distance with the leaders at the top of the league, making the 'Clash of the Titans' a vital two points up for grabs. Brown praised the depth with the St Helens squad;
"They will feel like they are going along reasonably well with the other side's that are level on points at the top of the league. With the amount of injuries and different situations they have had to cope with its fair to say that Royce (Simmons) has come in and had a good impact. Royce has a lot of experience as a coach and St Helens as a club always seem to produce good quality players, when they lose blokes they generally bring in someone of a good standard."
The Giants Head Coach also responded positively to the news that England International Shaun Lunt had extended his stay with the claret and gold until at least 2015;
"It is obviously really great news. To see him sign for the Giants from Workington and then progress to play for England and extend his time here is good news for the club and for Lunty going forward. The more talented English players the Giants can sign the better and having players playing in key positions together for long periods of time helps have good stability in key areas."
Interview with Shaun LuntFresh from signing a new four year contract extension, Giants star Shaun Lunt has praised the claret and gold faithful and hopes that they can help Huddersfield come out on top in Saturday's Clash of the Titans battle against St Helens (kick off 5.00pm).
Lunt told how he is looking forward to getting back to the Galpharm this weekend after narrowly beating Batley in the Challenge Cup last Sunday:
"We can't wait to get back out there this week, we've had a good weeks training and have worked really hard. Everyone is focused on Saturday's game and after a tricky Easter period we're looking forward to the St Helens game and hopefully getting right back on track."
The 25 year old hooker knows that the 'Clash of the Titans' will be a big test and highlights where the danger from the Saints will come from:
"St Helens have great players and are a threat all over the pitch but the main man for me is James Roby, he is like a machine and some of his stats this year have been outstanding. We know that we will have to be on our guard whoever lines up for them but our focus this weekend has got to be on our own game."
Lunt also admitted he has been amazed with how the Giants support has swelled in his time at the Club:
"The supporters have been absolutely fantastic in my time here and the numbers keep on growing. This season they are singing more and more and it really drives us on giving us a real boost when we are out there. I want to take this opportunity to thank them all and hopefully they will be here in great numbers at the Galpharm on Saturday evening."
Interview with Luke O'DonnellAustralian International Luke O'Donnell spoke this week ahead of his 200th senior first grade game against St Helens on Saturday at the Galpharm Stadium (5pm kick off).
The experienced back-row forward is determined to focus on helping the Giants get back to top form rather than the fact that he has reached a career milestone.
"I haven't really given it much thought to the fact it's my 200th game to be honest, I don't keep track of how many games I have played. I've missed my fair share of games in my career so far so it's nice to get to 200. As far as Saturday goes I'll be treating it like any other game, but it's nice to know that I've reached a milestone.
"We know as a team that we have been a little disappointing in the last few weeks and we are all aware of what we need to do. We have worked really hard this week leading into Saturday's game so hopefully we can put in a big performance and get back to playing the way we know we can.
"We have identified that fact that we need to get back to being at our highest intensity week in week out, that's probably what we have been guilty of - not being consistent. That is something we will be looking to do from here on in and it's a pretty important part of the year, I think we can go a long way to fixing it up this week and carry on from there for the rest of the season."
Having played in the 2005 NRL Grand Final for the North Queensland Cowboys, O'Donnell is looking to play his part in helping the claret and gold to success at the business end of the 2011 season.
"Every team wants to be in contention come the end of the season and we are no different. I've played in a losing Grand Final in Australia and it would be great to get an opportunity to do well in both competitions here and hopefully go all the way."
O'Donnell also reserved praise for the great support shown to the side in recent weeks with the Giants supporters travelling in numbers to North Wales, Perpignan and closer to home - Batley!
"There fans have been great recently and they have been travelling in really big numbers which is great to see, it's enjoyable to play in front of that kind of support. I'm sure we will get another great crowd on Saturday and hopefully we can put on a good show for them!"
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 2011 engage English Super League
Huddersfield Giants
15 games; 2 tries, 8 points.
[View] Round 1 [12 Feb 11] W 28-18 v Warrington. [LK]
[View] Round 2 [19 Feb 11] L 12-18 v Castleford (A). [LK]
[View] Round 3 [27 Feb 11] W 20-10 v Hull FC (H). [LK]
[View] Round 4 [04 Mar 11] W 18-10 v Harlequins (A). [LK] 4 Pts; 1t
[View] Round 5 [13 Mar 11] W 50-16 v Bradford (H). [LK]
[View] Round 6 [18 Mar 11] L 6-20 v Wigan (H). [LK]
[View] Round 7 [26 Mar 11] W 38-16 v Hull KR (A). [LK]
[View] Round 9 [08 Apr 11] W 29-10 v Warrington (H). [LK]
[View] Round 10 [15 Apr 11] W 38-6 v Leeds (A). [LK]
Match Fact: Sent Off - Fighting
[View] Round 12 [26 Apr 11] W 52-22 v Salford City (H). [LK] 4 Pts; 1t
[View] Round 13 [30 Apr 11] L 12-13 v Catalans (A). [LK]
[View] Round 20 [03 Jul 11] W 40-12 v Crusaders (H). [LK]
[View] Round 21 [08 Jul 11] L 16-28 v Warrington (A). [LK]
[View] Round 22 [17 Jul 11] L 0-36 v Bradford (A). [LK]
[View] Round 24 [12 Aug 11] L 6-19 v St Helens (A). [PR]
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2010 State of Origin
New South Wales Origin
1 games; [View] Origin [16 Jun 10] L 6-34 v QLD Origin (A). [BE]
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2010 NRL Telstra Premiership
North Queensland Cowboys
13 games; 4 tries, 16 points.
[View] Round 1 [12 Mar 10] L 24-30 v Broncos (A). [LK]
[View] Round 2 [20 Mar 10] W 28-20 v Panthers (H). [LK]
[View] Round 3 [26 Mar 10] L 8-33 v Dragons (A). [LK]
[View] Round 4 [03 Apr 10] W 32-18 v Titans (H). [LK] 4 Pts; 1t
[View] Round 5 [10 Apr 10] L 16-23 v Tigers (H). [LK]
[View] Round 10 [15 May 10] L 12-24 v Warriors (A). [LK]
[View] Round 12 [29 May 10] L 20-24 v Sea Eagles (H). [LK] 4 Pts; 1t
[View] Round 13 [07 Jun 10] L 4-32 v Rabbitohs (A). [LK]
[View] Round 19 [19 Jul 10] L 16-26 v Tigers (A). [LK]
[View] Round 20 [24 Jul 10] W 28-24 v Knights (H). [LK] 8 Pts; 2t
[View] Round 21 [30 Jul 10] L 16-24 v Panthers (A). [LK]
[View] Round 22 [06 Aug 10] L 26-34 v Broncos (H). [LK]
[View] Round 23 [14 Aug 10] L 18-37 v Titans (A). [LK]
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2009 State of Origin
New South Wales Origin
2 games; [View] Origin [03 Jun 09] L 18-28 v QLD Origin. [SR]
[View] Origin [24 Jun 09] L 14-24 v QLD Origin (H). [SR]
======================================================================================================
2009 NRL Telstra Premiership
North Queensland Cowboys
17 games; 5 tries, 20 points.
[View] Round 1 [13 Mar 09] L 18-19 v Broncos (A). [LK]
[View] Round 2 [21 Mar 09] W 42-14 v Tigers (H). [LK]
[View] Round 3 [28 Mar 09] L 12-26 v Storm (H). [LK]
[View] Round 4 [06 Apr 09] L 18-23 v Raiders (A). [LK]
[View] Round 5 [11 Apr 09] L 10-14 v Titans (H). [LK]
[View] Round 6 [19 Apr 09] W 34-10 v Sharks (A). [LK] 4 Pts; 1t
[View] Round 7 [25 Apr 09] W 26-12 v Sea Eagles (H). [LK]
[View] Round 9 [09 May 09] W 24-20 v Dragons (H). [LK]
[View] Round 10 [17 May 09] W 34-12 v Warriors (A). [LK] 4 Pts; 1t
[View] Round 11 [25 May 09] W 36-10 v Knights (H). [LK] 4 Pts; 1t
[View] Round 13 [06 Jun 09] W 46-12 v Rabbitohs (H). [LK]
[View] Round 14 [14 Jun 09] L 18-32 v Dragons (A). [LK] 4 Pts; 1t
[View] Round 17 [04 Jul 09] W 24-4 v Sharks (H). [LK]
[View] Round 23 [14 Aug 09] L 12-22 v Bulldogs (H). [LK]
[View] Round 24 [22 Aug 09] L 26-32 v Knights (A). [LK]
[View] Round 25 [28 Aug 09] L 10-16 v Broncos (H). [CT] 4 Pts; 1t
[View] Round 26 [06 Sep 09] W 32-16 v Roosters (A). [CT]
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2008 NRL Telstra Premiership
North Queensland Cowboys
15 games; 5 tries, 20 points.
[View] Round 1 [14 Mar 08] L 18-36 v Gold Coast (A). [LK]
[View] Round 2 [22 Mar 08] L 10-30 v Tigers (H). [LK]
[View] Round 3 [28 Mar 08] L 2-36 v Broncos (A). [LK]
[View] Round 4 [05 Apr 08] W 38-14 v Eels (H). [LK]
[View] Round 5 [12 Apr 08] W 20-16 v Dragons (A). [LK]
[View] Round 6 [19 Apr 08] W 48-20 v Warriors (H). [LK]
[View] Round 9 [10 May 08] L 18-24 v Sharks (H). [SR] 4 Pts; 1t
[View] Round 10 [17 May 08] L 6-38 v Sea Eagles (A). [LK]
[View] Round 12 [31 May 08] L 18-19 v Panthers (H). [LK]
[View] Round 21 [02 Aug 08] L 20-32 v Roosters (H). [SR] 4 Pts; 1t
[View] Round 22 [09 Aug 08] W 36-12 v Bulldogs (A). [SR]
[View] Round 23 [16 Aug 08] L 20-26 v Gold Coast (H). [SR] 4 Pts; 1t
[View] Round 24 [23 Aug 08] L 24-38 v Knights (A). [SR] 8 Pts; 2t
[View] Round 25 [30 Aug 08] W 22-10 v Raiders (H). [SR]
[View] Round 26 [06 Sep 08] L 22-28 v Sharks (A). [SR]
======================================================================================================
2007 NRL Telstra Premiership
North Queensland Cowboys
4 games; 1 tries, 4 points.
[View] Round 1 [16 Mar 07] W 23-16 v Broncos (A). [SR]
[View] Round 2 [24 Mar 07] W 43-6 v Roosters (H). [SR] 4 Pts; 1t (71st)
[View] Round 3 [31 Mar 07] W 22-18 v Dragons (A). [SR]
[View] Round 4 [07 Apr 07] W 25-24 v Tigers (H). [SR]
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2006 Tri-Nations Test Series
Australia
5 games; [View] Tri-Nations Match 1 [14 Oct 06] W 30-18 v New Zealand (A). [SR]
[View] Tri-Nations Match 2 [21 Oct 06] W 20-15 v New Zealand (H). [SR]
[View] Tri-Nations Match 4 [04 Nov 06] L 12-23 v Great Britain (H). [LK]
[View] Tri-Nations Match 6 [18 Nov 06] W 33-10 v Great Britain (H). [LK]
[View] Tri-Nations Final [25 Nov 06] W 16-12 v New Zealand (H). [LK]
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2006 State of Origin
New South Wales Origin
2 games; [View] Origin [24 May 06] W 17-16 v QLD Origin (H). [LK]
[View] Origin [05 Jul 06] L 14-16 v QLD Origin. [LK]
======================================================================================================
2006 NRL Telstra Premiership
North Queensland Cowboys
16 games; 4 tries, 16 points.
[View] Round 1 [12 Mar 06] W 36-4 v Broncos (A). [SR]
[View] Round 2 [18 Mar 06] W 20-16 v Sea Eagles (H). [SR]
[View] Round 3 [25 Mar 06] W 40-8 v Storm (H). [SR] 4 Pts; 1t
[View] Round 4 [31 Mar 06] W 26-18 v Eels (A). [SR]
[View] Round 5 [07 Apr 06] W 32-12 v Tigers (H). [SR]
[View] Round 6 [16 Apr 06] W 18-16 v Knights (A). [SR]
[View] Round 7 [22 Apr 06] L 22-24 v Sharks (A). [SR] 8 Pts; 2t
[View] Round 8 [29 Apr 06] L 18-22 v Roosters (H). [SR]
[View] Round 16 [24 Jun 06] L 14-34 v Dragons (A). [SR]
[View] Round 19 [15 Jul 06] L 8-17 v Panthers (A). [SR]
[View] Round 20 [22 Jul 06] W 26-10 v Broncos (H). [SR]
[View] Round 21 [30 Jul 06] L 20-40 v Roosters (A). [SR]
[View] Round 22 [05 Aug 06] L 14-54 v Bulldogs (H). [SR]
[View] Round 23 [12 Aug 06] L 0-26 v Warriors (A). [SR]
[View] Round 25 [27 Aug 06] W 34-12 v Rabbitohs (A). [LK] 4 Pts; 1t
[View] Round 26 [01 Sep 06] W 22-8 v Eels (H). [LK]
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2006 International Test Matches
Australia
1 games; [View] Bundaberg Rum Test [05 May 06] W 50-12 v New Zealand (H). [SR]
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2005 Tri-Nations Test Series
Australia
5 games; [View] Tri-Nations Match 1 [15 Oct 05] L 28-38 v New Zealand (H). [SR]
[View] Tri-Nations Match 2 [21 Oct 05] W 28-26 v New Zealand (A). [SR]
[View] Tri-Nations Match 4 [05 Nov 05] W 20-6 v Great Britain (A). [SR]
[View] Tri-Nations Match 6 [19 Nov 05] W 26-14 v Great Britain (A). [SR]
[View] Tri-Nations Final [26 Nov 05] L 0-24 v New Zealand. [SR]
======================================================================================================
2005 NRL Telstra Premiership
North Queensland Cowboys
26 games; 2 tries, 8 points.
[View] Round 3 [27 Mar 05] W 32-22 v Warriors (A). [LK]
[View] Round 4 [02 Apr 05] W 52-18 v Knights (H). [LK]
[View] Round 5 [09 Apr 05] L 6-38 v Sharks (A). [LK]
[View] Round 6 [16 Apr 05] W 44-20 v Tigers (H). [LK]
[View] Round 7 [23 Apr 05] W 36-22 v Panthers (A). [LK]
[View] Round 8 [30 Apr 05] W 38-18 v Roosters (H). [LK] 4 Pts; 1t (38th)
[View] Round 9 [08 May 05] L 12-50 v Eels (A). [LK]
[View] Round 10 [14 May 05] L 6-23 v Broncos (H). [LK]
[View] Round 12 [27 May 05] W 48-12 v Bulldogs (A). [LK]
[View] Round 13 [04 Jun 05] W 56-14 v Sharks (H). [LK]
[View] Round 14 [12 Jun 05] L 4-34 v Dragons (A). [LK]
[View] Round 16 [25 Jun 05] L 22-23 v Raiders (A). [SR]
[View] Round 17 [02 Jul 05] W 24-16 v Warriors (H). [SR]
[View] Round 18 [10 Jul 05] L 18-22 v Knights (A). [SR]
[View] Round 19 [16 Jul 05] L 14-16 v Souths (H). [SR]
[View] Round 20 [23 Jul 05] W 38-18 v Panthers (H). [SR]
[View] Round 21 [31 Jul 05] W 26-24 v Sea Eagles (A). [SR]
[View] Round 22 [05 Aug 05] L 16-36 v Dragons (H). [SR]
[View] Round 23 [14 Aug 05] L 16-28 v Tigers (A). [LK]
[View] Round 24 [20 Aug 05] W 31-28 v Raiders (H). [SR]
[View] Round 25 [28 Aug 05] W 30-16 v Souths (A). [SR] 4 Pts; 1t (2nd)
[View] Round 26 [03 Sep 05] W 30-24 v Storm (H). [SR]
[View] Finals Week One [09 Sep 05] L 6-50 v Tigers (A). [SR]
[View] Finals Week Two [17 Sep 05] W 24-16 v Storm. [SR]
[View] Qualifying Finals [25 Sep 05] W 29-0 v Eels. [SR]
[View] Grand Final [02 Oct 05] L 16-30 v Tigers. [SR]
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2004 NRL Telstra Premiership
North Queensland Cowboys
1 games; [View] Round 1 [13 Mar 04] L 20-24 v Sea Eagles (H). [LK]
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O'Donnell, Luke
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