By Christian Nicolussi
Accor Stadium: Manly remain hopeful Tom Trbojevic will return for week one of the NRL finals and play with painkilling injections in his right shoulder.
Trbojevic came from the field in the 64th minute during Friday night’s 34-22 win over Canterbury clutching his arm and with blood pouring from a cut above his eye.
He landed awkwardly after tackling Bulldogs forward Jacob Preston, then had Manly teammate Luke Brooks collect him accidentally from behind.
Sea Eagles coach Anthony Seibold confirmed after the game there was an issue with Trbojevic’s AC joint, which would rule him out of next Sunday’s final-round clash against Cronulla – but the plan was to have him return the following weekend.
Should Manly defeat Cronulla at a packed 4 Pines Park, it will give them a shot at hosting an elimination final in their northern beaches backyard.
Even the most rusted-on Manly fan knows their team will not progress through September without the man known as ‘Turbo’.
“It’s an AC joint, so he will definitely miss next week from what I understand,” Seibold said.
“He will get an X-ray. He will be right for week one of the finals. There is something there that can take the pain away.
“We’ll put a plan together for him and make sure we look after him. All going well, he will be right to go again.
“He copped a cork to his shin earlier and was hobbling around. Then he copped a split to his head and hurt his AC at the same time. He’s in the wars a bit tonight.
“The good thing is those types of injuries aren’t season-ending.
Injured Manly star Tom Trbojevic.Credit: Getty Images
“There is some pain there, and he will be a bit sore and sorry for the next few weeks. But he will be right to go for week one.”
Trbojevic dislocated his left shoulder against Parramatta in 2022, while he tore his right pec during Origin II last year.
His brother Jake said of Tom: “Everyone over the Spit Bridge will be crossing their fingers. We need to have him out there. He’s the most resilient person I’ve seen in my life.”
There was a nice touch when young Bulldogs fans stood and applauded him as he went up the tunnel for a medical check.
Trbojevic made headlines during the week when it emerged he had offered to take a paycut after missing so many games because of injury. The man known as ‘Turbo’ had hoped the NRL would look favourably upon his goodwill gesture, only to be denied.
Bulldogs supporters were convinced Trbojevic was about to be sent to the sin-bin before half-time when he appeared to tackle Canterbury rake Reed Mahoney without the ball before the break.
But referee Ashley Klein used the term “touch and go”, and was convinced Trbojevic was a chance of collecting the ball before collecting Mahoney.
Aside from the Trbojevic concern, Manly will lose Jason Saab to a high ankle sprain, while Luke Brooks was placed on report for tipping Preston on his head.
Haumole Olakau’atu was arguably Manly’s best, with his shot on Kurtis Morris to feature on the highlights reel all weekend. Daly Cherry-Evans also produced a monster 40/20 that put Manly on the attack early in the second half.
Canterbury looked flat for most of the night and may have felt the effects of two long road trips to Bundaberg and Auckland.
They had their own headaches when Matt Burton failed a head injury assessment. At least they welcome the return of skipper Stephen Crichton from suspension. It was the first time all year they had conceded more than 30 points.
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