Reigning NRL champions the Penrith Panthers have been dealt a blow ahead of the finals, with five-eighth Jarome Luai suffering a shoulder injury.
The incident occurred in the first half of the Panthers' shock loss to the Parramatta Eels.
EXCLUSIVE: Panthers captain defends 'villain' Jarome Luai
What is Jarome Luai's injury?
Luai suffered a dislocated shoulder during Thursday night's Panthers-Eels clash.
The playmaker went off in the first half after his left arm was accidentally trapped under the weight of Bryce Cartwright’s body as he attempted to burrow over for a try.
Cartwright was able to hold Luai up over the line, but in the process of doing so, landed on top of his opponent, which caused him to scream out in pain.
The Samoan international was eventually helped to the sidelines with a grimace painted across his face as Fox League’s Jake Duke later confirmed his shoulder had popped out during the tackle.
When will Jarome Luai return for the Penrith Panthers?
The severity of Luai's injury will be clearer once results emerge from his scan on Friday.
If there is minimal structural damage to his shoulder, he likely faces three to six weeks on the sideline, per NRL Physio.
Significant damage would require surgery and see him miss three months, which would rule him out until next season.
Confirmed shoulder dislocation for Jarome Luai, classic landing on outstretched arm mechanism. General recovery guide:
— NRL PHYSIO (@nrlphysio) August 24, 2023
- minimal structural damage & joint stable: rehab for 3-6 weeks
- significant damage/joint unstable & immediate reconstruction surgery required: 3+ months pic.twitter.com/9PW5zcpkt5
With one more week of the regular season remaining before four weeks of finals, Luai's availability is set to be touch and go.
Panthers coach Ivan Cleary was relatively optimistic in his post-match press conference.
"We're just going to have to wait until he gets scans tomorrow," he said.
"It's obviously a decent injury but they [medical staff] were fairly positive about the potential of it. But really, we're not going to know until he gets scans.
"Unfortunately, that's the way it goes sometimes. There are often a lot of injuries at this time of the year in and around finals, but we're just going to have to wait for the results tomorrow.
"Whatever happens, we'll come up with a plan from there."
