Wigan Warriors boss provides Zach Eckersley update after being stretchered from the field
Wigan Warriors centre Zach Eckersley has gone to hospital for scans on his neck after being stretchered from the field in their 36-28 win over Leigh Leopards, his coach Matt Peet has confirmed.
The 21-year-old was stretchered from the field in the second half after being involved in an innocuous-looking tackle that left him on the floor and requiring medical assistance for a lengthy period of time.
After around 10 minutes on the ground, Eckersley was placed on a stretcher before being carried from the field to a standing ovation at the Brick Community Stadium. He was escorted down the tunnel by members of his family as well as the medical staff.
The injury appeared to come off the back of an innocuous-looking challenge, with referee Chris Kendall placing the incident on report, though it was not penalised on the field.
Speaking in his post-match press conference, Peet confirmed that Eckersley was on his way to Salford Hospital for scans on his neck.
“He’ll go to the hospital now,” said Peet. “As we came off, he was still here, his family are still with him.
“He’s still leaving to go to Salford Hospital. Doctor Chris Brookes was keeping an eye on him, one of our medical team and the chairman, so he said he’s going to need scans and stuff, so it is just a case of it being fingers crossed.”
Eckersley had actually got on the scoresheet not too long before leaving the action, with the homegrown talent finishing in the corner following a stunning flick pass from Bevan French.
Oldham native Eckersley was back in the side in place of Abbas Miski, who has recently undergone surgery on the knee injury that has been troubling him since the club’s return from Las Vegas.
The Warriors went on to win the game 36-28, which was their sixth win in a row. Unfortunately, Eckersley wasn’t the only one to suffer a scary-looking injury at the Brick Community Stadium. In the Women’s Super League opener between Wigan and York, Valkyrie star Tamzin Renouf was also taken from the field on a stretcher after being down on the ground for around 15 minutes before leaving the action, which saw the men’s game delayed to allow the teams to properly warm up before the men’s game.