‘Hopefully we can get him back on the park next week’: Sea Eagles could get star back from injury for Storm clash
The Sea Eagles are licking their wounds from a costly loss to the Panthers, but they should get a boost with Josh Schuster expected to return while Turbo’s back spasms aren’t as bad as first feared.
NRL
Don't miss out on the headlines from NRL. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Sea Eagles coach Anthony Seibold is hopeful five-eighth Josh Schuster will be fit to return next week as the club continues to take a conservative approach with the talented playmaker.
Schuster missed Manly’s first game of the season, was outstanding in his return against Parramatta but has missed the past fortnight with a quad injury.
The 21-year-old is so important to Manly’s attack that the club has taken a safety first approach to ensure he doesn’t do more damage that could lead to a lengthier stint on the sidelines.
His absence really hurt the Sea Eagles who only managed two tries off kicks in their 44-12 loss to Penrith, while their left edge was picked apart thanks to a major reshuffle when winger Reuben Garrick was forced off with a head knock.
It didn’t help that superstar Tom Trbojevic battled through back spasms for most of the night, but he said he was fine after the game thanks to a needle at half-time.
“He (Schuster) trained the bulk of the session on Wednesday, but he could feel it so we thought we’d make a decision for the medium term to pull him out,” Seibold said, with Kaeo Weekes starting in the halves before he shifted to the wing.
“We need to be conservative with ‘Schuey’.
“They’re not big injuries so they’re one or two weeks, but if we put him out earlier and he hurts it further, it could be a four or five or six week injury and then we’ve lost him for an extended period.
“The season is a marathon, not a sprint, and we’ve done some really positive things in the first month but we were way off tonight in the first half.
“We thought it was the best decision to be a bit more conservative with Schuey tonight, and hopefully we can get him back on the park next week.”
Schuster is likely to return for Friday’s home game against the Storm, but the Sea Eagles will be without Garrick and Karl Lawton (dislocated shoulder) as the club licks its wounds from a costly night out west.
The Sea Eagles were completely outplayed in the first half as the Panthers raced out to a 32-0 lead in one of the most dominant 40 minutes of the season as the visitors failed to fire a shot.
They limited the damage in the second half, but skipper Daly Cherry-Evans accused his side of not showing up for their biggest test of the year against the defending premiers.
“That first 40 was really tough,” he said.
“We played a really good side and we made it extremely difficult for ourselves, so it was the perfect recipe. We didn’t show up and they were ready to rock and roll and they put us to the sword.
“I thought we were going to be up for this one because it was a great test for us, but it probably showed where we’re at.”
Originally published as ‘Hopefully we can get him back on the park next week’: Sea Eagles could get star back from injury for Storm clash
Storm ‘grubbery’ finally comes back to bite
The Melbourne Storm are licking their wounds after another tough grand final loss, but they only have themselves to blame for falling short.
Cleary comment that provoked Panthers towards another title
Ivan Cleary revealed he questioned the desire of his ‘complacent’ Panthers during the season, a moment that stung the players and ultimately sparked their run towards a fourth-straight premiership.