Burleigh Bears forwards Jamie Dowling and Jeff Lynch battling injuries ahead of Easts Tigers game

BURLEIGH forwards Jamie Dowling and Jeff Lynch are racing the clock to be fit for their side’s preliminary final against Easts on Saturday.

BURLEIGH forwards Jamie Dowling and Jeff Lynch are racing the clock to be fit for their side’s preliminary final against Easts on Saturday.

The Bears will have several fringe players such as Jesse Savage and Tyler Sparkes on standby for the pair, who are both members of the club’s 2016 premiership-winning side.

Lynch is in hospital at Robina with an infection to his knee, sustained after it was cut during Burleigh’s 13-6 loss to Redcliffe last Saturday.

That cut required a number of stitches and Lynch was then forced to admit himself to hospital the following night as pain levels rose.

“It was infected and getting worse,” revealed coach Jimmy Lenihan.

“He said he felt like he was going to pass out, it was making him sicker and sicker.

Jeff Lynch. Picture: SMP Images

“And then when he went to hospital, they put him straight on a drip to try to get as much antibiotics into him but obviously something must still be in there because it’s getting worse and they thought it would get better over a day.

“So they are thinking that it might still have something inside the cut and they are going to have to cut him open and scrub it out.

“It looks like it will be another day or two before it will start settling down and not getting sore; that will get us to Thursday or Friday so he would probably be in some doubt I would say.”

Dowling meanwhile is battling osteitis pubis.

Jamie Dowling. Picture: SMP Images

“He probably won’t train this week. We will have to see if it has got a tear in it or not,” Lenihan said.

The good news for the Bears is that five-eighth Dylan Phythian will return to the side having served his one-match ban, bringing a handy left-foot kicking game to the table.

Sam Coster and Jai Whitbread will also be free to play with early guilty pleas for charges copped from the Dolphins clash, while injured winger Henare Wells (shoulder) will be monitored during the week.

Lenihan added he wouldn’t be surprised to see Melbourne duo Sam Kasiano and Cheyse Blair take the field for the Tigers, given that Nelson Asofa-Solomona and Will Chambers are due back for the Storm’s next game.