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from smh.com.au
Johns' role won't be less: Hagan
January 5, 2004 - 5:05PM
Recent serious injuries to captain Andrew Johns will not prevent him from taking charge of Newcastle's attack in 2004, coach Michael Hagan said.
Johns badly injured his back in a collision with St George Illawarra prop Luke Bailey in a 2002 qualifying final, ending his season.
He missed the latter part of Newcastle's 2003 season and Kangaroo tour clean sweep over Great Britain after suffering a C4-5 disc protrusion in his neck last August.
Hagan said it was unlikely the Australian skipper would be placed in cotton wool for much of the upcoming season, despite his importance to the Newcastle side.
"It would be difficult to change his instinctive way of play," Hagan said.
"I mean, the back injury was more of an impact collision and the neck injury was a degenerative injury.
"It's difficult to take him out of the frame."
Johns and the rest of the Newcastle players returned from its Christmas break, and Hagan said Johns was being watched by the coaching staff.
"We're anticipating that he'll be able to do nearly everything within the next couple of weeks," he said.
"(The players) came back pretty well.
"They retained all the work we did before the break, which is good."
It had been reported that Johns was a chance to return at the World Sevens tournament, to be held at Aussie Stadium on January 24-25, but Hagan was unsure.
"He wouldn't have had great preparation ... we'll assess him in the next couple of weeks," he said.
Newcastle has been grouped with the Warriors, Manly and a qualifier for the Sevens.
Hagan said it was hard to do any sort of meaningful preparation for such an unpredictable event.
©2003 AAP
Johns' role won't be less: Hagan
January 5, 2004 - 5:05PM
Recent serious injuries to captain Andrew Johns will not prevent him from taking charge of Newcastle's attack in 2004, coach Michael Hagan said.
Johns badly injured his back in a collision with St George Illawarra prop Luke Bailey in a 2002 qualifying final, ending his season.
He missed the latter part of Newcastle's 2003 season and Kangaroo tour clean sweep over Great Britain after suffering a C4-5 disc protrusion in his neck last August.
Hagan said it was unlikely the Australian skipper would be placed in cotton wool for much of the upcoming season, despite his importance to the Newcastle side.
"It would be difficult to change his instinctive way of play," Hagan said.
"I mean, the back injury was more of an impact collision and the neck injury was a degenerative injury.
"It's difficult to take him out of the frame."
Johns and the rest of the Newcastle players returned from its Christmas break, and Hagan said Johns was being watched by the coaching staff.
"We're anticipating that he'll be able to do nearly everything within the next couple of weeks," he said.
"(The players) came back pretty well.
"They retained all the work we did before the break, which is good."
It had been reported that Johns was a chance to return at the World Sevens tournament, to be held at Aussie Stadium on January 24-25, but Hagan was unsure.
"He wouldn't have had great preparation ... we'll assess him in the next couple of weeks," he said.
Newcastle has been grouped with the Warriors, Manly and a qualifier for the Sevens.
Hagan said it was hard to do any sort of meaningful preparation for such an unpredictable event.
©2003 AAP
