Melbourne Storm admit doubt if Billy Slater will be able to play on next season

MELBOURNE Storm coach Craig Bellamy says there is ‘No hope in hell’ Billy Slater will play again in 2016, and doesn’t know if he’ll carry on next season.

Billy Slater of the Melbourne Storm during their round 1 NRL match between the Melbourne Storm and the St George Illawarra Dragons at AAMI Stadium in Melbourne, Monday, March 7, 2016. (AAP Image/Tracey Nearmy) NO ARCHIVING, EDITORIAL USE ONLY

MELBOURNE Storm coach Craig Bellamy says it could take some time for star Billy Slater to know whether or not he’ll be able to play on next season.

Slater, 32, will miss six to eight months after this week undergoing his second bout of shoulder surgery in just nine months.

Slater, who has a year remaining on his contract, has yet to reveal whether his future plans but many expect him to play on.

Bellamy said it will depend on how Slater’s shoulder responds to rehabilitation post-surgery.

“We need to see how the shoulder pulls up,” Bellamy said.

“We’re hearing the operation went well and that’s a really good sign. As time goes on, he will know himself if he is right to play footy again. If the shoulder is good after the rehab I’m pretty sure Billy will want to play on, but that is just me thinking what I think will be his idea.”

In six months’ time it’ll be mid-September, but Bellamy knocked on the head any suggestion that Slater could return this season if Storm again went deep into the finals.

“No hope in hell,” Bellamy said.

“It is six to eight months (prognosis), so I think that is well past the 2016 season and we won’t be seeing him again this season, no way.”

Slater played in Storm’s Round 1 clash with the Dragons before pulling up sore afterwards.

Storm are resigned to the fact Slater won’t play again this season.

Bellamy said all concerned believed the Test fullback was right to play.

“He wasn’t 100 per cent as you can imagine as he still had a bit of pain, but at the same time he is very experienced and he thought he was OK as well,” he said.

“It didn’t work out and what has actually happened in terms of whether the damage was already there or if it happened during pre-season or in the game, no one seems to know.

“Billy can’t remember a time where he felt he had done something, so it is a bit of a mystery that I don’t think will ever be solved.”

The Storm coach backed Cameron Munster to do the job in Slater’s place ahead of Sunday’s clash with the Warriors in Auckland.

“He handled it really well last year and he was really solid on Sunday as well, so it is nice to have a replacement like that to be honest,” he said. “He’s a tough kid, so I think he’ll handle it OK.”