Casualty Ward: Manly Sea Eagles battle shocking injury toll
The NRL finals are about to kick off but Manly face some huge challenges after more bad news — check out all the latest injury news from around the competition.
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The Sea Eagles are in danger of being unable to name a healthy 21-man squad for the first week of the NRL finals series.
After losing their star fullback Tom Trbojevic for the season with a ruptured pec, Round 25 resulted in season-ending injuries to Curtis Sironen (midfoot) and Taniela Paseka (knee).
Sironen suffered a Lisfranc (midfoot) injury late in the first half, but was bravely able to play on before succumbing to the injury in the 44th minute. A Lisfranc injury involves damage to the ligaments and joints within the midfoot (halfway between the toes and ankle), and is usually caused by rotation or compression of the foot itself. This section of the foot plays a vital role in the distribution of force during weight bearing activities, so for Sironen to play on as long as he did with the injury is extremely tough.
There are different severities of Lisfranc injury, with any that involve fracture, dislocation or complete ligament tears usually requiring surgery. Worst case scenario if Sironen does require surgery, he will be looking at a 3-5 month recovery period.
Meanwhile Paseka lasted just 19 minutes before coming from the field due to a traumatic knee injury. While there was some early optimism he would return, this was quickly ruled out as medical staff were able to perform further testing.
The manner in which Paseka injured his knee brought concern for an MCL injury, which post-match was feared to be a grade 2-3 (partial-complete tear). Thankfully testing performed by the medical staff indicated the ACL was intact and stable.
Even a grade two MCL sprain would still see Paseka miss 3+ weeks, meaning his 2019 NRL season has also come to an end.
Adding further to Manly’s woes was news that Joel Thompson is unlikely to return this season after suffering a broken radius (forearm bone) two weeks ago. The second-rower had initially hoped a four-week recovery period would allow him to feature in the finals series if Manly were to progress, however that is now considered unlikely. A fracture to the mid shaft of the radius, the location which Thompson appeared to suffer his injury, often requires 8-12 weeks for adequate bone healing and to allow a return to contact.
Michael Oldfield scored a spectacular try for the Raiders, but in doing so suffered what appeared to be a significant AC joint injury.
The AC joint is located at the tip of the shoulder, and represents the joint between the acromion (part of the shoulder blade) and clavicle (collar bone). This joint is commonly injured when a player lands on the point of their shoulder, meaning during the spectacular leaping tries this is an injury of concern once the player comes back down to earth.
The reports from the sideline suggested a suspected grade 2-3 AC joint sprain for Oldfield, which if confirmed would usually result in a 3-6 week absence.
It is worth mentioning AC joint injuries can often present a chance for early return, with many players opting to use painkilling injections and/or heavy padding to get back on the field. Unfortunately the early signs aren’t positive for the Raiders outside back, who left the ground in a sling.
The Rabbitohs will be hoping Dane Gagai can overcome a minor hamstring strain to take his place in their finals matchup with the Roosters.
After suffering the injury Gagai showed good strength and power in testing performed by the medical staff, but unfortunately couldn’t accelerate past 85%.
While the injury isn’t considered severe, coach Wayne Bennett did indicate there was a strain present. He is considered in some doubt for week one of the finals, particularly considering the nature of hamstring strains with lingering symptoms and high recurrence rates. Even minor hamstring strains often don’t allow a return to the field for 10+ days.
The club doctors were extremely busy this weekend, with a considerable number of players removed from the field to undergo HIAs.
Finals-bound players Liam Knight, Tevita Tatola, John Sutton, Lindsay Collins, Brad Parker and Ray Stone all reportedly suffered concussions and will be required to pass through the NRL’s six-stage protocol to take the field next week.
Concussion symptoms can be unpredictable, prolonged and intermittent, but thankfully most NRL players are able to safely pass through protocol in time to play the following week. In 2018 there were 78 concussions suffered during NRL games, which only resulted in 14 missed games.
The likelihood of quick recovery and symptom resolution after suffering a concussion isn’t always tied to the traumatic nature of the injury, or how “hard” a player was hit.
Liam Knight left the field on Thursday night looking quite unsteady, with blood streaming down his face, after a heavy hit which caused his head to be sandwiched between two Roosters tacklers.
In the sheds post-game the Rabbitohs medical staff reported Knight showed minimal concussion symptoms and good recollection of the match, and this was maintained when he presented for assessment the following day.
However Sutton and Tatola, who were arguably involved in less traumatic blows, showed symptoms of concussion in the sheds post-game (e.g. headaches, dizziness, short-term memory loss etc). All players will be in the hands of their medical staff and will each go through an individualised assessment process to ensure their safety when returning to the field.