SECOND row Sione Mata'utia will miss Friday's game at Salford with an ankle injury - but he will be fit for the semis in a fortnight.

Mata'utia limped out of the Leeds game shortly after scoring - and he did the lap of honour in a protective boot.

However, coach Kristian Woolf has explained that the injury is better than was initially feared.

Woolf said: "It is not too bad. He has a bit of history with that ankle having had surgery on that – the way he fell with the weight coming down on it, he obviously had a real fright there and thought the worst.

St Helens Star:

"It is a lot better than what everyone thought on the night.

"He won’t play this week, but he will 100 per cent be available for the semi-final.”

Mata’utia has hit a rich vein of form in recent weeks in time for the business end, scoring twice at Magic and then bustling his way over for a try a couple of minutes before his injury.

“Sione has been going really well – he started the year well and had some disruption through the middle of the year, where we had some disruption, missing games and he had some injury and suspension and could not quite get going in the middle of the year,” Woolf said.

“But he has had that bit of a run at the end of the year and been able to settle on that left edge.

“I think he’s been exceptional – the more we can get him to continually play in that position the better he is going to be as well, as will his combination with Lewis Dodd and Mark Percival.”

Woolf explained that Mark Percival won’t be available this week after his bang to the head against Leeds.

“We will play it a bit cautious there because it was a heavy knock. With where we are in the year he is a key player for us and we are going to look after him this week and ready for the finals,” he said.

Jonny Lomax will get a run out this week at Salford having missed the best part of a month since pulling up injured against Leigh.