[ad_1]
The Melbourne Storm hope to have Cameron Munster available for round two despite the superstar five-eighth facing likely surgery to fix a compound dislocation of his finger.
Key points:
- Cameron Munster dislocated his finger in the 27th minute, but came back on to play a decisive role in the second half
- If the injury requires only a minor clean-out, he may play against Canterbury next week
- The Storm have injury concerns around a number of other key players
Munster fought his way through Melbourne’s 16-12 golden-point win over Parramatta in Thursday night’s NRL season opener, after the bone in his right ring finger penetrated the skin in a tackle in the 27th minute.
The Australian Test five-eighth required two pain-killing injections as doctors put the bone back in place, before he came back out in the second half and set up a crucial try to level the scores late.
“The bone’s still sticking out, so, look, it’s not ideal,” he told ABC Sport after the game.
“But I’ll go back and have a look in Melbourne and see what I can do.”
It is expected Munster will now need a clean-out on the finger early in the week, but the Storm believe it is still possible he could face Canterbury next Saturday at AAMI Park.
“We could be [without him] but, hopefully, he can have the operation early in the week,” coach Craig Bellamy said.
“We have a bit of a longer turnaround.
“We got a message that at one stage he wasn’t getting back out there … He showed a lot of ticker to get back on.”
If the surgery is contained to a minor clean-out, it is possible that Munster could play next week.
Munster is one of many injury problems facing the Storm.
Winger Xavier Coates attempted to play on with an injury to the sternoclavicular joint, between the collarbone and sternum, before he eventually succumbed.
It is now expected he too will spend some time on the sidelines.
It is the second straight year where the victorious Storm have left round one with injury headaches, after losing star prop Christian Welch and outside back George Jennings to season-ending injuries in their season opener last year.
This year, the Storm entered the season with fullback Ryan Papenhuyzen out for at least eight weeks, with Tui Kamikamica, Tariq Sims, Jennings, Justin Olam and Dean Ieremia among the others who did not line up on Thursday night.
Injuries proved costly to the Storm last year, as they struggled to field a consistent backline, leading to a mid-season slump.
AAP/ABC
[ad_2]
Source link