‘I was a bit scared at the time’: Jai Arrow set to play this weekend after overcoming back spasms

Jai Arrow has had a horror run of injuries this year but he hopes the worst is behind him after going down with back spasms in an ugly loss out west.

Jai Arrow is confident he will play this week after he left the field with back spasms. Picture: Will Russell/Getty Images

Souths forward Jai Arrow is confident he’ll be fit to play this weekend after going down with back spasms in the loss to Cronulla that prompted Phil Gould to describe the Rabbitohs as “lazy” as they fight to stay in the top eight.

Arrow was in agony on Saturday night in Perth when he slumped to the turf and struggled to get off the field despite having two trainers there to help him.

He was able to get back on the exercise bike 10 minutes later but did not return to the field.

There were fears Jai Arrow had done serious damage to his back, but he’s confident he’ll be fine to play for the Rabbitohs this weekend. Picture: Will Russell/Getty Images

“I was a bit scared at the time, but it was just back spasms which kind of made my legs weak,” he said.

“It was a different feeling because I haven’t had back problems before. It’s a bit tight, but I’m sure I’ll be fine for this weekend.

“I know I was carrying on a bit but it was more when it made my legs weak because I was pretty scared because I didn’t know what happened when my back seized up.

“I was surprised that I couldn’t stand up straight. It felt OK when they lifted me on their shoulders so I felt OK, but as soon as I put my hands back down again, my back seized up again.”

Last week’s injury is the latest setback in what’s been a frustrating season for the rep forward who missed seven weeks after he injured his ankle in an ugly hip-drop tackle on the Gold Coast.

The ongoing rehab for that injury may have contributed to his back issue, but Arrow just wants to move on from the setbacks that included an uncomfortable five-hour flight back home from Perth.

The Queensland star has had a frustrating 2023 due to several injuries. Picture: Will Russell/Getty Images

“I did have a disrupted week with my ankle, and some of that could have been me favouring my left side, so the left side of my back decided to go on me,” he said.

“I don’t really care what it is, I just want to be out on the paddock this week. I’ve obviously had a pretty bad run through injury this week and I’m kind of sick about talking about injuries because I just want to be out playing footy.

“The flight on the way back home was a bit torturous. I was lucky enough to sit in premium economy so I was grateful for that. I tried to stand up as much as I could.”

Arrow’s injury came when he rushed in to tackle Cronulla’s Royce Hunt who knew straight away that something was wrong.

“He came in flying at me. I remember seeing Cookie (Damien Cook) and I said, ‘I’m going to get this guy’, and then he (Arrow) came out of nowhere,” Hunt said.

“I remember he dropped to the floor and I asked him if he was all right. He started shaking and I was worried for him but it ended up being back spasms.

“It looked pretty bad because he was on the floor shaking, so I tried to tell the ref, but he was all good because he was on the bike and walking around afterwards.”

The Rabbitohs must bounce back against the Dragons after they were easily beaten last week. Picture: Paul Kane/Getty Images

The Rabbitohs are desperate for Arrow to play given regular props Tom Burgess (suspension) and Junior Tatola (injury) are both missing.

The Bunnies sit in eighth and were criticised by Gould who called out their lack of effort in the loss to Cronulla – was their seventh defeat from their past 10 matches.

“Everyone has their opinions, and that’s probably the way that we’re looking at the moment,” Arrow conceded.

“Maybe we are (lazy) or maybe we’re not, but it is what it is.

“We can’t listen to that outside noise. We just have to get back to doing what we love which is playing footy and enjoying ourselves.

“Is it a fair comment? We definitely don’t go out to be lazy. We go out every week to put our bodies on the line, but it may look like that (to others), so it’s probably a fair comment.”

Originally published as ‘I was a bit scared at the time’: Jai Arrow set to play this weekend after overcoming back spasms