LEIGH Centurions have lost star full-back Neil Turley for the next six weeks.

Top try poacher Turley badly damaged his knee when he collided with an advertising hoarding during Leigh's NFP win over Swinton at Hilton Park last Sunday.

There were initial fears that Turley had fractured a knee cap in the collision but while x-rays showed no break, subsequent tests have revealed a bruised medial ligament. His knee is also badly lacerated.

The injury not only rules Turley out of Leigh's next half dozen games, but has also wrecked any chance he had of winning selection for next month's Origin Series.

Last season Turley was the only NFP player selected for the county match, scoring a try for Lancashire against Yorkshire at Headingley and subsequently being selected for the England U21s tour to South Africa.

The injury is a savage blow for the Centurions who already have Liam Bretherton, Paul Norman and Dave Ingram as long term casualties. Bretherton would have been Turley's obvious replacement at full-back, but he is still several weeks away from fitness after suffering a broken wrist.

Norman is out for the rest of the year with knee trouble while Ingram also needs surgery on a troublesome knee.

Coach Paul Terzis must now find a new number one for Sunday's tricky trip to Doncaster Dragons. Mark McCully and Chris Irwin are being considered as Turley's replacement.

"The loss of Neil is a major blow," admitted Terzis. "But looking on the bright side it could have been a whole lot worse. We could have lost him for the season had the knee cap been fractured."

Turley's injury isn't Terzis only headache ahead of the Doncaster game. Gareth Price has a rib problem and Simon Knox (back), Simon Baldwin (hand) and Chris Morley (leg) all face late fitness checks.