Oldham's Matty Wilkinson has suffered a broken leg in training and faces a disrupted start to the 2021 rugby league season.
He has been told he needs an operation, but it can't be done until swelling goes down.
"It's too early to even think about how long he will be out," said Roughyeds chairman Chis Hamilton. "Our main focus anyway is on Matty's welfare and looking after him.
"It's all about him. He's as well as can be expected, but nobody likes missing the start of a season, especially when there's been no rugby for a year because of Covid."
A hooker, Wilkinson has shared that role with club captain Gareth Owen for the past two seasons.
A goal in the first five minutes and another one six minutes from time were enough to see Ashton safely into the second qualifying round of this year's FA Cup and a home tie against Scarborough.
After squandering a two-goal lead at home to Prescot Cables on Saturday, Hyde United spared their FA Cup blushes with a 1-0 win in Tuesday’s First Qualifying Round replay.