Jimmy is man on cup mission
LEEDS centre Jimmy Keinhorst has Wembley in his sights as he seeks to make up for lost time after being sidelined for more than three months with a frustrating injury to his little finger.
It is not unusual for rugby league players to play on with fractured cheekbones and broken thumbs but there was little Keinhorst could do after rupturing a tendon in the little finger of his left hand in a match at Warrington in April.
“I was trying to grab a shirt and it just pulled off,” recalled the 27-year-old Keinhorst as he took a break from training for Saturday’s Ladbrokes Challenge Cup semi-final against Hull.
“It wasn’t really painful, it just didn’t work, I couldn’t move it.
“It was a frustrating one, for a little finger, but it was something that needed to be done. I had to have it reattached and it was a very slow process in terms of the healing.
“I had to have straps on my arms and it was a bit tedious at times. I could do some running when I got the cast off but it wasn’t until 10 or 11 weeks that I could start catching a ball.”
Keinhorst, whose injury halted a promising start to the season, made his comeback in the Rhinos’ 10-7 Super League victory over Hull 11 days ago and, with the prospect of two finals taking place during the business end of the season, he is grateful there is still lots to play for.
“It was going well when I got the injury so it was a bit of bad timing,” he said. “I thought I had become comfortable in that centre spot where I wanted to play.
“Luckily I managed to get back into the team and hopefully I can build on the two games I’ve had so far and put some performances in. There are some big games to look forward to.”
Keinhorst is desperate to reach a second cup final after experiencing defeat at Wembley in 2012 in only his fourth game for the club and being dropped for the 2015 victory over Hull KR.
He lost out to Australian forward Mitch Achurch two years ago when coach Brian McDermott finalised his bench and hints that the decision still rankles with him.
“I was disappointed to miss out because I had played in a run of games leading up to the final,” he said. “I was dropped for that game and it was a bitter pill to swallow at the time.
“Obviously Macca had his reasons and I had to crack on.”
Holders Hull stand in the way of Keinhorst’s ambitions at the Keepmoat Stadium in Doncaster and he is preparing for a difficult test.
“It will be a tough task on Saturday,” he said. “After last year they will know how good it is and what it takes to get there.
“From what I’ve seen and heard, semi-finals are really intense games and real energy battles so the start of the game will be big. It will come down to who can stay in there and keep in the game the longest.”