NRL grand final teams: Tom Opacic’s last-ditch bid to overcome hamstring injury
A hamstring injury cost a Geelong Cats star his place in last week’s AFL grand final and now a Parramatta Eels star is facing a similar battle.
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Tom Opacic’s hopes of playing in the NRL grand final will come down to Wednesday’s main training session as the Eels centre races the clock to overcome a hamstring tear.
The reliable left centre was a late scratching from Parramatta’s preliminary final win over the Cowboys, with Bailey Simonsson filling in for what was his first NRL start in that position.
Opacic hurt his left hamstring in the semi-final win over Canberra two weeks ago and is desperate to play one more game before he heads over to the English Super League in 2023.
“I got through a bit of running today, so hopefully it pulls up well. I’ll run again on Wednesday and hopefully I can tick a few more boxes,” he told the NCA NewsWire.
“I got up to a bit of high speed today.
“I daresay I’d have to run fully on Wednesday or by the main session on Friday. It’s all about running at high speed and under fatigue.”
Opacic got through similar tests last week but didn’t take part in Parramatta’s main training sessions before he was eventually ruled out.
“I was pretty confident I would play, but there was a risk of doing more damage and costing the team if I went out there,” he said.
“I think it was a slight tear. It was nothing major because I’ve been moving freely. It’s probably another battle I’ll have this week because I have to be 100 per cent right before I play, otherwise it’s not worth the risk.
“Everyone made a mutual decision that it was way too early to risk it. I ran with it on Wednesday and it felt all right, but it just wasn’t fully right.”
Players have lined up in big games with broken bones in the past, but playing with a muscle tear is fraught with danger and was exposed in last week’s AFL grand final.
Geelong’s Max Holmes ruled himself out just hours before the first bounce, while Swans big man Sam Reid played with an adductor injury but was subbed out at halftime.
“That’s why it has to be 100,” Opacic said.
“I wouldn’t want to do that to my teammates who have worked so hard to get here. If I can’t get to 100 per cent, well, that’s footy.
“I haven’t had the conversation with Brad, but I’m sure I’ll be in the 22.
“There are blokes who play 10 or 15 years and never get the chance to play in a grand final. If I don’t get the chance to play then I’ll still feel great that I got the chance to play my part in the team. If I play and we get the job done, even better.”
Scenes in Kellyville. The blue and gold brigade out in full force pic.twitter.com/BlqQevaupa
— Martin Gabor (@MartinJGabor) September 26, 2022
INTERVIEW SHUTDOWN SPARKS KIKAU INJURY FEARS
Viliame Kikau is free to play in next week’s grand final after he received a fine for his grade one shoulder charge on Campbell Graham, but there is a slight concern with the Panthers back-rower sporting a brace on his left hand after the game.
Kikau said he was fine after the preliminary final and that he would be right to take his place in next week’s decider, although his interview was cut short once the topic was brought up.
Coach Ivan Cleary also said winger Taylan May was a chance to return from a hamstring injury with a decision to be made by Wednesday.
A Panthers spokesperson confirmed Kikau carried the injury into the match and that the brace was purely precautionary and that there was no fracture.
The injury scare came on the same night he was placed on report for a tackle that went wrong in the first half.
“I got it wrong,” Kikau said.
“Those things happen in games. I just got off the line and tried to lead the team with defence and got it a little bit wrong.”
It means he’ll get one more match in Panthers colours before he makes the move to the Bulldogs next season.
And what a match it’ll be against their biggest rivals and closest neighbours, with western Sydney set to descend into chaos as battle lines are drawn between Penrith and Parramatta.
“I don’t think there’s anything bigger than this. It’s going to be a beauty,” Kikau said.
“Parra people hate Penrith, and Penrith people the same. It’s going to be a blockbuster. They’ve beaten us twice this year and we got them once so it’ll be another big one next week.
“It’s great for the fans and great for the game as well. The atmosphere is unreal.
“There’s going to be a lot going on and the fans are going to be in the streets in Penrith and Parra. We just need to go through the week with everything that needs to be done and get ready for the game.
“I’m just going to stay at home this week (to avoid it all).”
ARTHUR’S HUGE GRAND FINAL SELECTION DILEMMA
Parramatta coach Brad Arthur is facing the biggest selection call of his career after son Jake didn’t get on the field in the Eels’ gripping grand final qualifier win against the Cowboys.
Jake Arthur warmed the bench for the entire 80 minutes of Parramatta’s 24-20 win over North Queensland in Townsville on Friday night.
Coach Arthur opted to only use 16 players in stifling heat at Queensland Country Bank Stadium as Parramatta conjured a come-from-behind victory to secure their first grand final appearance since the 2009 loss to Melbourne.
The Eels are now one win away from snapping their 36-year premiership drought in next Sunday’s NRL grand final at Accor Stadium.
But Arthur has a number of selection calls to make, including Tom Opacic’s potential return and the contentious decision around his son.
The inclusion of Jake — a specialist playmaker — on the bench ahead of former NSW forward Nathan Brown and others has attracted scrutiny this season.
The Eels have also endured nepotism accusations at times, with the Arthurs coming under criticism.
The fact he didn’t get on the field in Parramatta’s biggest game in 13 years will trigger debate about whether Jake should be in the 17 for the title decider.
Brad Arthur has been under immense pressure to orchestrate Parramatta’s first premiership since 1986 and said he would lead the Eels into grand final week with little knowledge of how to handle it.
“I haven’t been worried about my future because I knew the boys had my back,” he said.
“We need to be excited about the opportunity we’ve got and the occasion of the week. We need to enjoy it.
EELS SKIPPER CLEARED OVER DANGEROUS TACKLE FEARS
Michael Carayannis, David Riccio
Parramatta co-captain Junior Paulo has escaped a ban despite being under scrutiny for a dangerous tackle.
Paulo will be free to play in the grand final after not even being fined for the second half tackle which resulted in a penalty.
North Queensland’s Jason Taumalolo would have been rubbed out of the premiership decider for his tackle on Isaiah Papali’i. He will have a delayed start to Tongan’s World Cup bid with a three game ban if he takes an early guilty plea.
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