Leigh Leopards’ Joe Ofahengaue is one of almost a dozen players in his team alone who is sidelined currently, with Super League undergoing a seemingly unprecedented injury crisis.

Full-back is the position that has been hit hardest, whilst the likes of Huddersfield Giants, St Helens and Leigh Leopards are among the three most impacted clubs, but is there any actual reason behind the current injury crisis?

That was something that Ofahengaue was asked when appearing on Sky Sports’ The Bench podcast with the prop forward currently out with a calf issue, set to return in around two to three weeks.

“A lot of it is luck, obviously,” the 30-year-old admitted.

“As a footy player, it comes down to your prep and how you trained over the pre-season can play a lot into it with your soft tissue injuries.”

He also joked: “I feel like living over here in the UK, the coldest country in the world, we should probably be starting our season in the summer.”

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Is fatigue causing Super League injuries?

However, Ofahengaue also pointed to the new ruck speed rules that have seen the game speed up with the prop forward claiming that it’s leading to fatigue and therefore bad tackle technique, something he believes could be leading to more injuries.

“Blame the rules as well. I think players are coming under a lot of fatigue,” Ofahengaue claimed.

“A lot of hip drop tackles are being seen more in the game, which happened in the NRL as well. When the game gets a bit quicker, technique goes out the window and players fall into those traps of getting their ankles taken and stuff like that.”

At least two serious injuries have come off the back of hip drop-style tackles with Bradford’s Dan Russell and St Helens’ Jacob Host both suffering long-term injuries, with both their tacklers banned for two matches respectively.

As for his own recovery, Ofahengaue explained how he’d been working hard to ensure he’s primed for when he finally gets the green light to return.

He said: “I hardly have a day off when I’m injured because I know that nothing can ever beat the game speed and game fitness, so you need to stay on top of that.”