Warriors hit with terrible news as Shaun Johnson ruled out

Warriors fans have been left devastated after horror news emerged on Thursday surrounding star halfback Shaun Johnson.

Shaun Johnson is reportedly in doubt for Saturday’s clash with the Panthers. (Photo by Dave Rowland/Getty Images)

Shaun Johnson, the Warriors’ most important player during their 2023 revival, has been ruled out of the club’s finals showdown against Penrith on Saturday.

The halfback was under an injury cloud, according to a report in the NZ Herald, due to a lower leg injury but was officially ruled out by the evening with the reason being given as “calf soreness”.

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It comes as the Warriors flew in to Sydney on Thursday afternoon after the club chartered a private flight to ensure the club has as seemless a preparation as possible.

Johnson was mobbed by reporters at Sydney Airport and was frustrated with the questioning.

“We’ve come here to win a game and we’re going to do that,” he said.

“We’ve got players who can step in, we’ve done it all year, we’ve filled a role and that’s why we’re here.”

Coach Andrew Webster was also questioned and he said: “If it was a broken hand, you could try and play with it because it can’t get any worse, but when it’s a soft tissue injury, you’ve got to make sure you’re careful. You just can’t risk it.”

He also confirmed it was a new injury after pulling up after running.

“He’s the best player in the comp this year, we’re going to miss him but we’ve got so many players who can stand up, we’ve done it all year,” Webster added, saying the side was still confident of pulling off a win.

The Warriors have finally reached the post-season after a five-year absence and have a massive opportunity in Saturday’s qualifying final.

Shaun Johnson is reportedly in doubt for Saturday’s clash with the Panthers. (Photo by Dave Rowland/Getty Images)

The winner of that match gets a week off and a home preliminary final, which would be an enormous advantage to the New Zealand outfit.

But a difficult task against the two-time defending premiers will become Herculean without Johnson, who has scored eight tries and kicked 71 goals across 23 matches this season.

His current issue is believed to be a new knock, not related to a thigh strain that had limited him over the past month or so.

Shaun Johnson considered “50/50” to play this week after picking up a leg injury at training. Not an aggravation of the quad injury he had been carrying but no further details from the Warriors as yet

— NRL PHYSIO (@nrlphysio) September 7, 2023

It’s understood Johnson, who is the favourite for this year’s Dally M Medal, has only had a limited role in training this week.

The 32-year-old was on the flight to Sydney on Thursday afternoon and the club will give him every chance to prove he can feature against Penrith.

Having earned the crucial second chance through a top-four finish on the ladder, however, the Warriors may err on the side of caution and rest him for the club’s following match.

Fresh off being named the Warriors’ player of the season this week, Johnson’s absence will be devastating to the Kiwi outfit.

It follows the recent hamstring injury to young five-eighth Luke Metcalf, who is likely done for the season.

Ronald Volkman is on standby for Johnson, the 21-year-old featuring against the Dolphins last weekend.