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The Gunnedah Red Devils broke free of the shackles of its long-running hoodoo against Walcha on the weekend but it came at a cost.
The Devils’ 44-16 win over home-town Walcha, the first in years for Gunnedah in the Central North Rugby Union (CNRU) competition, was marred by a long list of injuries.
Among the most serious of them is Matt Roseby who is in Newcastle preparing for surgery after suffering a suspected broken cheekbone and eye socket in the round one fixture.
Also feeling the pain is Pete Hughes who will have scans on a busted knee and Tom Perrett who looks to be out for the season after tearing his hamstring.
Another three to four Devils players are also plagued by injury to a lesser extent.
Devils club President Stu Morrison tried his best not to take the polish off what was a solid first-up win for Gunnedah this season but he had to be honest – the soaring injury toll is a real thorn in the side for the weeks ahead.
“We were just really unlucky in that regard (injuries),” he said.
“Our fitness was very good and the attitude of the players was great.
“Everybody worked hard for each other.
“The set piece looked good too – we got two tries off the lineout.”
Fly-half Pete Henderson was outstanding at the pivotal position and also maintained a 100 per cent goal kicking strike rate for the Devils.
Morrison said while he wouldn’t rule out an upset by Walcha altogether this year, the early signs didn’t look promising despite the club fielding only one grade in this year’s CNRU competition.
“They will probably still surprise a few teams,” he said.
“But they’ve had a very limited pre-season.
“They struggled a lot in a few areas.”
This Saturday Gunnedah is at home to Moree.