NEW recruit Ben Parkinson will have to wait at least another week to make his York City Knights debut – leaving coach Dave Woods to hope last-minute moves to bolster the squad today come off.

The Press revealed on Tuesday that the 20-year-old prop had joined for the rest of the season from Leeds, and the plan was to give him a run-out in the reserves last night before throwing him into the first team for Sunday’s Championship One visit of Workington.

But it then came to light he had a shoulder injury, so he will join the Knights’ other front-rowers stuck on the sidelines – and leave Woods again scrambling around to fill his pack.

Jon Fallon is out for the season, Brett Waller could follow suit, both with knee injuries, and a third prop, Alex Benson, is banned for two matches, leaving Nathan Freer and Jack Stearman as the only recognised front-rowers available.

Woods, unhappy Parkinson’s injury was not revealed before he attended training, could now be forced to bring in the untried Callum Dinsdale, a Wakefield-based trialist who has been playing reserve-grade for a few weeks and was in the squad for last week’s Northern Rail 9s.

Woods could also move second-row Chris Clough forward.

Said the head coach: “He (Parkinson) has been out for three weeks with a shoulder injury, which I didn’t know about. He’ll now probably play for the reserves next Thursday if he’s okay.”

That leaves unfamiliar duo Dinsdale and Dan Barron, a recently-arrived former Gateshead Thunder youngster, as the main contenders – unless the Knights sign new blood in time.

“It’s a tough one to throw a bloke into. But it might give him an opportunity to show what he’s got,” added Woods.

Meanwhile, it seems Mike Embleton is unlikely to don the Knights shirt again this season.

The second-row-cum-centre played only one first-team match and only a few for the reserves since joining from York Acorn ARLC at the beginning of June. He has not been a regular at training and is likely to return to Acorn for their pre-season.