Hull now confident they can survive loss of Long

LIFE without captain Sean Long will not spell disaster for Hull FC.

Coach Richard Agar takes his fourth-placed side to Bradford on Sunday knowing his pivotal captain will miss the next eight weeks with a dislocated elbow.

The Airlie Birds have lost just once in the last six games but suffered four defeats in the seven fixtures Long missed when twice injured earlier this season and do not have an obvious deputy with Richard Horne unfit.

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However, Agar believes he is better prepared to deal with the loss of the veteran scrum-half this time and may consider switching Australian hooker Shaun Berrigan or full-back Jordan Tansey.

"You take your scrum-half, captain, playmaker and main kicker out of the team and it always leaves a bit of a hole," said Agar.

"You can expect things might not run as smoothly as you'd like but, while we may lack the edge Sean brings, we can make up for that.

"We need to replicate the effort, spirit and commitment we've been playing with and we've got options.

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"We've worked on a number of combinations this week and may start with one and switch to another at Odsal."

Hull hope Long, 33, will be around for the final couple of rounds of the regular season but will not receive confirmation of the severity of the damage to his elbow ligaments until he visits a specialist in a week.

Agar potentially has a ready-made replacement in the shape of assistant coach James Webster, the 30-year-old former Hull KR scrum-half who recently joined the staff from Widnes.

"I think James has big ideas about it, but that's just an indication of how keen James is and his enthusiasm for the club," he said. "But at this stage, I don't have any thoughts of playing him. I'm always reluctant to say never say never, and Horney should be back soon, but, hopefully, James can remain on the coaching staff where he's doing an excellent job."

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Former Australian Test loose-forward Craig Fitzgibbon returns to the Hull team after missing the win over Catalans while winger Mark Calderwood, who has not featured since tearing a hamstring in the 18-6 victory over Bradford in March, makes his comeback in the Under-20s.

CATALANS Dragons have appointed Australian Trent Robinson as their head coach for the next three years.

Robinson, 33, joins Catalans from Sydney Roosters where he was working as assistant coach to former Hull and Bradford boss Brian Smith.

A former Roosters, Parramatta and West Tigers player, he had a stint with Toulouse and succeeded Justin Morgan as coach in 2005.

Wakefield's John Kear was Catalans' first choice but the French outfit were unable to agree compensation.