NRL Casualty Ward Round 5: Brisbane centre Kotoni Staggs suffers hamstring injury at training
Brisbane’s season from hell has added a new twist, Sea Eagles go the knuckle and stars drop at other clubs. EVERY NRL CLUB’S INJURY DETAILS PLUS NRL PHYSIO ANALYSIS.
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The Broncos have been hit with an injury scare ahead of Thursday’s clash with the Knights, after star centre Kotoni Staggs hobbled off at training.
One of Brisbane’s in-form players, Staggs took an intercept pass at training on Sunday morning and ran 50m before he suddenly pulled up short, grabbing at his hamstring.
Staggs was then assisted from the field.
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If Staggs is ruled out of Thursday’s match, it will be a huge blow for the Broncos who are already missing Jake Turpin, David Fifita, Jesse Arthars and Jack Bird to injury.
They are set to welcome back skipper Alex Glenn (calf) and Tevita Pangai Jr (suspension) this week, with Glenn slotting in at centre after Staggs left the field.
The Broncos need a win this week, after suffering three straight losses since the COVID-19 break.
MANLY QUARTET LEAD ROUND 5 INJURY CARNAGE
By Brian Seeney
The Sea Eagles have had a run of injuries with Moses Suli (finger fracture), Marty Taupau (thumb dislocation), Curtis Sironen (bone bruising) and Jorge Taufua (quad) coming out of Round 4 with concerns.
Marty Taupau left the field midway through the first half clutching at his hand, and it quickly became clear he had suffered a compound dislocation (bone pierced the skin) of his thumb.
In good news for the Sea Eagles and Taupau he appeared to dislocate the distal joint in his thumb, which involves a much quicker recovery than the more commonly dislocated thumb joint closer to the wrist.
As long as a significant fracture is avoided the joint is usually stable once relocated, with return to play dictated by pain management and wound healing. With the Sea Eagles having a 10-day turnaround before their Round 5 clash Taupau will be a good chance to prove his fitness in that time.
While Moses Suli was able to play the full 80 minutes, coach Des Hasler indicated post match there were concerns the centre had suffered a finger fracture and scans would need to be performed.
Moses Suli undergoing surgery after suffering finger injury last night, was said to be going for scans to check for fracture. If isolated fracture return usually within 2-6 weeks. Hope for no tendon involvement, as this can push recovery out to 8 weeks + pic.twitter.com/kKEP5Wn5hN
— NRL PHYSIO (@nrlphysio) June 12, 2020
A fracture was indeed discovered, with Suli undergoing surgery the following day. Surgery in these cases can actually speed up recovery, and provided there is no secondary soft tissue damage (to structures like the tendons) a return to the field can be achieved before the usual 4-6 weeks required for bone healing with conservative management (no surgery).
The insertion of pins and plates stabilises the fracture and allows for early progress with rehab, and the Sea Eagles indicated they hope to have Suli back within 2-4 weeks.
Sironen and Taufua were ruled out on Friday after carrying injuries, and while Taufua won’t return for at least 2 weeks Sironen will be given every opportunity to prove his fitness for Round 6.
Just as the Broncos were looking to get some troops back, training on Sunday has left them scrambling with yet another injury concern.
Kotoni Staggs pulled up quickly after making a break and was assisted from the field with a suspected hamstring injury.
He was reportedly hitting top end speed, and this brings concern for a moderate to severe grade strain.
Scans will clarify the severity, but even the most minor of hamstring strains usually require 10-14 days before a player can safely return due to the high reinjury rate.
If Staggs suffered a partial tear (grade 2) or more he will be facing at least a month on the sideline.
Valentine Holmes will undergo scans on an ankle injury after attempting to run through the pain in the Cowboys game on Friday night. After suffering the injury early in the first half he hobbled on for 20 minutes before leaving the field, yet was still desperate to return after half time. Thankfully the medical staff intervened; even though the initial diagnosis was a minor ankle sprain the risk for further damage was too great.
The injury occurred when a Warriors tackler landed on Holmes lower leg, causing his ankle to violently turn out.
This brings concern for a high ankle sprain (or syndesmosis injury), and if a minor sprain is confirmed by scans this would usually result in 1-3 weeks recovery.
Jordan McLean lasted just 20 minutes for the Cowboys before limping off with a calf injury.
Details on the severity are yet to be revealed, but a low-moderate grade strain is most likely considering his ability to come from the field unassisted.
This can require anywhere up to 6 weeks recovery depending on the specific location and grade of calf muscle strain.
Kurt Capewell injured his knee in the second tackle of the Panthers loss to the Eels, and lasted the rest of the set before needing to be assisted from the field by the trainer. Initial word from the Panthers medical staff was a suspected high grade medial ligament injury. The way the MCL is sprained can often bring risk for involvement of the ACL, but thankfully this is easily ruled out by hands on tests the medical staff can perform in the sheds. If it is confirmed that Capewell suffered a complete rupture of his MCL (grade 3) he would likely require 6-8 weeks to return to play.
Matt Moylan won’t be available for the Sharks today after experiencing some tightness in his hamstring late in the training week. In recent injury reporting this is often referred to as “hamstring awareness”, which is used to describe any feelings of pain or tightness in the hamstring that could be a warning sign for future injury. After suffering a calf strain around Christmas Moylan was reportedly extremely thorough with rehab and load management in an effort to reduce his risk of another recurring strain. It is now 6 months later and symptoms have returned to his hamstring after just his first game back. While this is a minor setback in isolation and the Sharks are likely being extremely cautious with their first choice fullback, considering Moylan’s extensive history of both hamstring and calf strains this latest development is quite concerning.
Jai Arrow may be playing through pain for the next few weeks after he aggravated a rib cartilage injury late in the first half on Saturday. Originally suffering the injury in Round 4, scans showed only minor damage and Arrow was expected to require pain relief (injections) to help him get through the game. While there is minimal concern for further or permanent long term damage in these cases, the risk of aggravating the pain is very high. While Arrow did suffer an aggravation he was able to return to finish the game, but moving forward the risk of recurrence will likely remain for the next 2-3 weeks.
Dale Copley could be the most severe injury from the weekend after an awkward tackle resulted in him being carried from the field with an ankle injury. Held up in contact, a defender landed heavily on the Copley’s left lower leg causing his foot to twist violently. As with Holmes earlier in the weekend this injury mechanism brings concern for a high ankle sprain, and the traumatic nature of the injury along with Copley’s inability to weight bear suggests a moderate to high grade sprain is a probability. If surgery is required 6-8 weeks on the sideline will be the likely result for the Titans centre.
Luciano Leilua was another player who suffered an ankle/foot injury and showed an inability to weight bear as he was assisted from the field. The way the injury occurred seemed quite innocuous, with only a slight twist in Leilua’s ankle detected by the gameday footage. Thankfully scans revealed a best-case scenario with Leilua avoiding fracture and diagnosed with a lateral ankle sprain. Unlike a high ankle sprain, these often look a lot worse than they actually are and can result in just a few weeks recovery.
The edge back rower is some chance of being fit for Round 6, but worst case scenario could miss 1 week to allow the pain and swelling to settle.
Scans revealed a small fracture in Tariq Sims radius this week, with the edge forward undergoing surgery to insert pins and plates. This is used to stabilise the fracture in the wrist and will allow for an accelerated rehab protocol. With the location of the fracture he is still expected to miss 4-6 weeks.
Brayden Wiliame limped from the Dragons Round 3 clash after suffering a calf injury. The tear to his calf muscle occurred near the tendon, which results in a more conservative approach to treatment due to the slower healing rate of this tissue and high reinjury rate. His return to play estimate from the Dragons is 6 weeks.
Jazz Tevaga was on the comeback trail from an LCL rupture when he suffered a calf strain at training. This caused further setback to his rehab, and he won’t be seen for the Warriors until Round 8-10.
After having shoulder surgery during the season break, Michael Morgan is still “quite a few weeks away yet” from returning according to coach Paul Green.
The Cowboys captain suffered 4 shoulder subluxations (minor dislocations) in the opening 2 rounds, and surgery is used in these cases to stabilise the shoulder joint.
Ronaldo Mulitalo showed his toughness last week, playing through the entire second half of the Sharks win over the Cowboys with a meniscus tear in his knee. He underwent surgery this week and is expected to miss 4-6 weeks.
Jared Waerea-Hargreaves isn’t expected to suit up for the Roosters on Monday due to a minor back complaint picked up in Round 4. The Roosters are hopeful he will be able to return next week
FULL CASUALTY WARD
BRISBANE BRONCOS
Jack Bird (ACL, season)
Tevita Pangai (Suspension, Round 6)
Alex Glenn (Leg, Round 6)
Jordan Kahu (Shoulder, Mid-season)
Sean O’Sullivan (ACL, Mid-season)
Keenan Palasia (ACL, Late-season)
Izaia Perese (Stood down)
Jake Turpin (Tibia, 4-6 weeks)
Kotoni Staggs (Hamstring, TBC)
Jesse Arthars (Tibia, Round 9-12)
CANTERBURY-BANKSTOWN BULLDOGS
Marcelo Montoya (Hamstring, Round 10)
Chris Smith (Knee, round 11)
Joe Stimson (Shoulder, season)
Kerrod Holland (Ribs, TBC)
NORTH QUEENSLAND COWBOYS
Michael Morgan (Shoulder, round 7)
John Asiata (Knee, round 8-10)
Valentine Holmes (Ankle, TBC)
Jordan McLean (Calf, TBC)
ST GEORGE-ILLAWARRA DRAGONS
Jack de Belin (Stood down)
Brayden Williame (Calf, round 10)
Tariq Sims (Wrist, round 9)
PARRAMATTA EELS
None
NEWCASTLE KNIGHTS
Lachlan Fitzgibbon (Hamstring, Round 6)
Mitchell Barnett (Shoulder, Round 8-10)
Jayden Brailey (Knee, Season)
Connor Watson (Ankle, round 8-10)
PENRITH PANTHERS
Dylan Edwards (Ankle, Round 6)
Kurt Capewell (Hamstring, TBC)
SOUTH SYDNEY RABBITOHS
None
CANBERRA RAIDERS
Hudson Young (Suspension, Round 6)
John Bateman (Shoulder, round 10-12)
Sebastian Kris (extended leave)
SYDNEY ROOSTERS
Billy Smith (ACL, Season)
Issac Liu (HIA, TBC)
MANLY SEA EAGLES
Albert Hopoate (Knee, Round 8)
Manase Fainu (Stood down/shoulder, Indefinite)
Curtis Sironen (Knee, round 6)
Jorge Taufua (Leg, round 6)
Martin Taupau (Thumb, round 8)
Moses Suli (Knuckle, TBC)
CRONULLA SHARKS
Bronson Xerri (Stood down)
Cameron King (ACL, Season)
Matt Moylan (Hamstring, TBC)
Ronaldo Mulitalo (Knee, round 9)
MELBOURNE STORM
Tui Kamikamica (Back, round 6)
Jahrome Hughes (Hand, round 7-8)
GOLD COAST TITANS
AJ Brimson (Back, Indefinite)
Beau Fermor (Knee, mid season)
Tyrone Roberts (Ankle, round 6)
Ryan James (ACL, Season)
Dayle Copley (Ankle, TBC)
NEW ZEALAND WARRIORS
Kan Maumalo (Hamstring, round 7)
Taane Milne (ACL, Season)
Jazz Tevaga (Knee, TBC)
Nathaniel Roache (Knee, Mid-season)
Jackson Frei (ACL, Season)
Bunty Afoa (ACL, Season)
Leeson Ah Mau (Pectoral, season)
WESTS TIGERS
Jacob Liddle (Knee, Indefinite)
Luciano Leilua (Ankle, TBC)
Originally published as NRL Casualty Ward Round 5: Brisbane centre Kotoni Staggs suffers hamstring injury at training