Newcastle Knights face a significant setback as Kalyn Ponga is set to be sidelined for up to two months due to a hamstring injury, along with marquee signing Dylan Brown.
Lucky for the Knights, they have received positive news regarding Fletcher Sharpe, who is expected to return from his knee injury to play against the Warriors this weekend.
Recent scans indicated that Ponga sustained a high-grade hamstring strain during the initial half of Sunday's game, where they triumphed over Manly 36-16, which will leave him out of action for six to eight weeks.
This injury limits Ponga's opportunity to advocate for his spot in the State of Origin series, set to commence on May 27.
Meanwhile, playmaker Brown will be unavailable for four weeks following a grade-two medical cruciate ligament strain that he incurred late in the match against the Sea Eagles.
Knights football boss Chris James remarked, "Yesterday was a tough, physical contest and the boys showed real grit to come away with a great win."
He continued, "Injuries are part of the game, and the character the group showed to fight through adversity says everything about the culture we are building."
This latest injury news follows Sharpe's own struggles, as he had previously sustained a posterior cruciate ligament injury during Newcastle's round-one loss to North Queensland in Las Vegas.
However, Sharpe has made significant progress in his recovery and will be featured in the halves alongside Sandon Smith for Saturday's highly anticipated first game of the season in Newcastle.