YORK City Knights have boosted their squad for the all-important Championship One run-in with the recruitment of Hull KR full-back James Haynes – but there’s bad news on the injury front.

Haynes has come to York on loan after his season-long loan agreement with Championship club Dewsbury was curtailed prematurely, although his arrival comes too late for him to be considered for tonight’s trip to Gateshead.

However, another thing to be curtailed prematurely is Knights captain Richard Blakeway’s season.

The 26-year-old loose-forward has not played since limping out of the defeat by Hunslet on May 16 due to a knee injury, and, while it was hoped his absence would be short, a new diagnosis says he will miss the rest of the campaign.

Haynes can play all across the back line, and therefore boosts competition for places at centre and wing, where the Knights have been wanting to strengthen, and at full-back, a position recently vacated by Danny Ratcliffe, who has switched to half-back.

The 21-year-old is a product of the same Skirlaugh amateur club from whom the Knights signed Lee Waterman and Brett Waller. He also played internationally for the Great Britain Community Lions.

He started his pro career at Hull before moving across town to New Craven Park, for whom his one appearance in Super League came on the wing against Harlequins last season, in place of former Knights favourite Peter Fox, who had been called up with full-back Shaun Briscoe to the England squad.

He joined Dewsbury on loan at the start of this season and played 12 times, scoring two tries, but his last appearance was in mid-May and that switch has now been cancelled, with the Knights quick to move.

It is thought travelling became a problem, something that should not be an issue at York with so many Hull-based team-mates.

Knights general manager Ian Wilson said: “He’s excellent at returning the ball, he’s got a lot of pace and we think he can do a good job. Dave Woods (head coach) has had good reports as well. He can come in for the end of the season and add something to us. He gives us more competition and more options.”

Haynes’ arrival comes at the same time as scrum-half Casey Bromilow departs – as revealed on the back page today – and as news arrives that Blakeway will be a long-term absentee.

Woods explained: “It looks like he will be out for the season. It’s a tear to the medial ligament. He’s fine walking on it but once he starts to twist it there’s a problem. He’ll see a specialist and we’ll have to decide whether to operate straight away so he can be right for next year.”