JUST as Warrington Wolves looked to be getting some much-needed reinforcements back into their middle unit, they have been dealt another blow.

Joe Philbin is ready to return against Leigh Leopards on Friday after nine months out with an ACL injury but head coach Daryl Powell confirmed they will lose his fellow prop Joe Bullock for “four to six weeks.”

And while Gil Dudson has been named in this week’s 21-man squad after recovering from a broken hand, he is not expected to feature at The Halliwell Jones Stadium.

Bullock played through the pain barrier during last week’s win at Hull KR after suffering a thumb issue, but Powell says he now needs to rest the issue and faces a spell on the sidelines.

Warrington Guardian:

“He’s got a crack in his thumb – he played last week and struggled with it,” the Wire boss said.

“We got him scanned this week and it’s shown a crack so we need to make sure we look after him.

“It’s one in, one out which makes it tough for our middle unit who are working really hard.

“I’m not too sure on the time it will take but it will be between four and six weeks, so it’s tough for us.

“Gil won’t play this week but Philbs is ready to go. He’s had a great pre-season in terms of getting back running and he’s done everything he needs to.

“He’s had a rigorous return-to-play protocol and he’s looking good – I’m just excited to see him play.

“Right at the start of it all, he was very positive. It’s a tough thing to happen to a professional athlete but he knew what he needed to do.

“We’ve had a couple at the club and it’s tough but he’s been super-positive which is obviously pretty helpful.

“With Gil, it was just him getting in and around it again but he’s not far off.

“He’s looking alright – he’s back in practice and was out there today.”

Powell also confirmed James Harrison is set to have his ongoing knee issue examined further having finally succumbed to it last week.

Harrison played through the issue in the first three games but will now take time out in order to get to the bottom of the issue.

“He’s going to see a specialist on Tuesday,” Powell said.

“He’s had a scan but he’s going to a specialist in London next week to have a closer look at what’s going on.

“He’s another one that’s been battling through and has done a great job for us, but he needed to rest it.

“We’re not 100 per cent sure on a timescale for Jimmy but we’ll have more knowledge after Tuesday.”