The Dragons may have to roll out their fourth choice five eighth come the start of the NRL season after Jack Bird became their latest victim of their playmaker curse.
Bird felt a twinge in his knee when kicking at the end of a recent training session and is now a serious doubt for their season opener after undergoing a clean out of his meniscus.
He was already third choice for the role, but was pressed back into service after Junior Amone and Jayden Sullivan were both ruled out.
Amone is missing under the NRL’s no fault stand down policy after being charged with reckless greivous bodily harm stemming from an incident in the off-season where he is alleged to have attacked a tradie with a hammer. He was given bail in January but cannot play in the NRL or pre-season matches.
Sullivan is also missing for the start of the season after sustaining a hamstring strain in pre-season training. Additionally, the Dragons will be without preferred fullback Cody Ramsey, with a bowel complaint forcing him from the field for the enitre 2023 season.
The Dragons have the bye in Round 1 and will hope to rush Bird back in time for their season opener against the Gold Coast Titans. If he doesn’t make it, it is likely that Moses Mbye will shift to 6 to cover.
Elsewhere, Panthers backrower Liam Martin is a major doubt for their World Club Challenge fixture against Super League champions St Helens after suffering a shoulder injury.
The Blues and Kangaroos star, who signed a new deal with Penrith earlier this week, will face a few weeks on the sidelines due to the AC joint complaint, sustained during a wrestling session.
He is a minor doubt for the Panthers’ round 1 clash with Brisbane, but with an expected 2-4 week recovery time, the world title match will likely come too soon.
Saints will visit Bluebet Stadium on Saturday, 18th February, with Martin now unlikely to feature in the first meeting of Australian and British champions since 2020 and the first on Australian soil since 2018. The Panthers have never won the world title, having lost to Wigan in 1991 and Bradford in 2004.
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