THE impressive form of Gareth Hock has been a key factor in prop forward Richard Beaumont leave the Centurions this week according to coach Paul Rowley.

Beaumont joined Leigh in November but was unable to force his way into selection despite making three appearances for Rochdale Hornets and eight for Whitehaven during separate loan spells.

He has now agreed a permanent deal with Whitehaven until the end of the season.

The 27-year old came through at Hull KR before joining St Helens, however injury curtailed his time there.

Centurions Head of Rugby Derek Beaumont said: “It has been a difficult year for Richard which obviously set him back during the early stages. He is a great bloke and a great trainer and he has worked hard up at 'Haven.

"Unfortunately for Richard he hasn't been able to force his way in.

"With all our middles staying fit and performing really well there has been a lot of competition which was added to with the signing of Gareth Hock.

"I would like to wish Richard well at Whitehaven for the rest of the year and I have no doubt his agent Martin Shuttleworth will have plenty of interest in Richard."

The Centurions are proving that rugby league is a squad business as Rowley is having to look after some of his older players to make sure their game-time is managed.

With six games to play in July, rotation is set to be the key, and the Centurions have numbers in their squad.

While Fuifui Moimoi sat out Sunday's 50-12 win at Workington due to suspension.

He was recalled to the squad to face Hunslet last night, and Rowley opted to run with Tommy Goulden as a substitute in Cumbria but he wasn't used at all due to the performances of Matthew Sarsfield and Kurt Haggerty in the triumph.

Goulden, 33, recently agreed a new deal with the Centurions, but watched on from the relative comfort of the bench and was then left out of the squad to take on Hunslet last night.

"I think we'd only used two subs in the first 40 minutes which says how much we dictated the pace of the game," Rowley explained.

"I was able to chop and change at will in that second half and Tommy Goulden never got used, which was good. We can use him now in future fixtures.

"As a senior player it's important how we manage him. I think we've done a good job in managing Tommy this year." Leigh have also taken similar steps with club captain Oliver Wilkes at times this season.

Despite the short turnarounds between games on which many other coaches have had their say, Rowley took the pragmatic approach.

He said: "Everyone is fit. There are bodies coming back as you know through Fuifui Moimoi, Jamie Acton and Mathias Pala, Liam Kay and Andrew Dixon – there's plenty there that we can swap and change. There are no dramas."

Rowley has his eyes set on the arrival of Featherstone Rovers in town.

They caught the headlines when they parted company with coach Andy Hay on Monday following a home defeat to Dewsbury and whilst the Centurions form has been good against the former Championship premiers for the last 18 months, they are still a dangerous side that accounted for Bradford Bulls at Odsal last Wednesday.

While Rowley confirmed a lack of injuries to his side ahead of the Hunslet fixture, other players that are back in contention include Sam Barlow and Martin Aspinwall, who has been missing from the first team panel since being injured just after Easter. His recall to the squad followed a comeback for the Reserves at Featherstone last week.