NRL 2021 transfer news: Mitchell Pearce diagnosis could deliver Jake Clifford early
Mitchell Pearce will be missing for months with the Knights playmaker to undergo surgery and it could see an out-of-favour Cowboy land in Newcastle.
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Newcastle halfback Mitchell Pearce will be sidelined for at least 10 weeks after scans confirmed a pectoral rupture suffered in Sunday’s 22-13 loss to the St George Illawarra Dragons.
In a blow to the already ravaged Knights, Pearce is expected to go under the knife as soon as Tuesday to repair the injury.
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Pearce suffered the same injury to his right pectoral muscle in his first season at the Knights and back then was sidelined for 11 weeks.
The untimely injury to Pearce has North Queensland playmaker Jake Clifford on the radar of Knights coach Adam O’Brien.
Clifford, who has signed a two-year with Newcastle from 2022, is out of favour at the Cowboys and Newcastle could do with his services immediately given the club’s injury crisis.
Scans also confirmed fullback Tex Hoy suffered a hamstring strain in Sunday’s loss.
Hoy, who has replaced Kalyn Ponga while out with a shoulder injury, is expected to miss anywhere between two weeks to a month.
O’Brien is hopeful Ponga will be available for selection on Tuesday, but the star won’t be rushed back despite the side’s burgeoning casualty ward.
While scans cleared David Klemmer of any serious injury, the forward, who played 30 minutes with an injured knee, is in some doubt for Saturday’s clash against the Gold Coast Titans.
On Monday afternoon, the Knights confirmed Kurt Mann will be unavailable for the Titans game after the utility playmaker failed his HIA on Sunday following a head knock.
Despite all the injuries, Knights fans won’t get to see young Bailey Hodgson just yet.
The 19-year-old back, who is the nephew of Canberra hooker Josh Hodgson, is also out injured with a meniscus complaint that required surgery.
To compound the situation for O’Brien, who admitted would struggle to name a 21-man squad for the Titans game, forward Jacob Saifiti is facing a ban for a shoulder charge on Dragons winger Mikaele Ravalawa.
Saifiti will miss one week with an early plea but will be stamped out for two rounds if the forward challenges the charges at the judiciary and isn’t successful.
CASUALTY WARD
Mitchell Pearce (pec, round 15-16) Kurt Mann (HIA, TBC) Tex Hoy (hamstring, round 6-7) David Klemmer (knee, round 6) Dom Young (knee, TBA) Edrick Lee (foot, round 5) Kalyn Ponga (shoulder, round 5-6) Phoenix Crossland (suspension, round 6) Bradman Best (elbow, indefinite) Lachlan Fitzgibbon (shoulder, indefinite) Jirah Momoisea (Achilles, indefinite)
‘It’s carnage’: Pearce blow just part of Knights disaster
- Paul Crawley
A “proud” but shattered Newcastle coach Adam O’Brien says he will struggle to even name a 21-man squad on Tuesday for Saturday’s clash on the Gold Coast.
That came in the wake of the Knights’ deepening injury crisis that went from bad to disastrous with star halfback Mitchell Pearce headlining a growing list of unavailable players.
Pearce’s season from hell continued when he suffered a suspected pectoral tear that could sideline him for “months”.
The 31-year-old playmaker was on Sunday night awaiting scans to determine the full extent of the injury.
But the fear is he will be out for anywhere from four weeks to several months, although it is not expected to sideline him for the entire season.
While this injury occurred on his left side, he suffered a similar injury in 2018 that kept him out for 11 weeks.
It was the result of an innocuous attempted tackle on St George Illawarra’s Tariq Sims during the first half of the shock 22-13 loss at McDonald Jones Stadium.
The Knights also lost five-eighth Kurt Mann to a sickening concussion while fullback Tex Hoy torn a hamstring that could keep him out for at least a month.
Concern for left pec injury for Mitch Pearce, common mechanism arm hung out to side. Best case: partial pec tear or biceps injury (could be 3-6 wks), but fear is a pec rupture which would require surgery & 10-14 weeks recovery. Pearce ruptured right pec in 2018. Hope for the best pic.twitter.com/Nqvu9LJ9CT
— NRL PHYSIO (@nrlphysio) April 4, 2021
Big prop David Klemmer battled on bravely with a knee injury in the second half but is in doubt for the clash against the Titans.
The team is already missing star fullback Kalyn Ponga (shoulder), strike centre Bradman Best (elbow), Phoenix Crossland (knee), Lachlan Fitzgibbon (shoulder) and Edrick Lee (foot).
O’Brien said Ponga could be back for the Gold Coast game but he would not be taking any chances at this early stage of the season.
“Hopeful for KP, but if he is not right, he is not right, I will not rush him,” O’Brien said.
“It is round four.
“Like, this is pretty much carnage for us tonight so I don’t need to add to that by making rash decisions now.”
As for Pearce the news on Sunday night “was not looking good at all”.
Asked if it could be for “months”, O’Brien responded, “yep”.
Asked how he gets his team up after losing a player as influential as Pearce, he added:
“You’ve just got to. I’m asking them to just get on with things on the field.
“Like, let’s be honest, it is not great. It is going to be a sleepless night tonight.
“Not just because of ‘Junior’. There is a whole heap to go through down there (in the dressing rooms). It is not great.
“But feeling sorry for ourselves doesn’t help us for next week. It doesn’t help anyone.
“We will review the game. We will review the medical stuff. And we will turn around and find a way to put in a performance against the Titans next week.”
Though just naming a team could prove extremely difficult.
Mann is unlikely to play with Blake Green (who returned from injury against the Dragons) now expected to take charge of the halves with Connor Watson his most likely partner.
“I don’t think I will be able to name 21,” O’Brien said.
“Naming the team is probably going to be a real big hurdle this week”.
O’Brien also revealed young outside back Dominic Young suffered a knee injury in the NSW Cup game.
It continues an awful year for Pearce after he lost the captaincy following a texting scandal, while his 300 game celebrations were ruined last week after a shock loss to Wests Tigers.
Pearce indicated straight away to the Knights’ medical staff that he was in strife.
Andrew Johns said in Channel 9 commentary that he could see tears welling almost instantly in Pearce’s eyes.
“He knows he’s in trouble,” Johns said.
Pearce started looking at the sideline indicating he needed to come off but was told to stay on the field.
Soon after play was stopped and Pearce exited the game.
“This is disastrous,” said Fox League’s Michael Ennis.
“Newcastle’s season is on the line here.”
Pearce returned to the sideline after halftime with his left arm in a sling but his season hangs in the balance.
Fox NRL’s Braith Anasta: “This is big. He is their chief playmaker.”
Greg Alexander added: “You could see that immediate reaction from him.
“He just hung that arm out … there is definitely some damage there.
“Hopefully for Mitchell and the Knights it is just a tear.”
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