Sydney Roosters players are rallying around injured teammate Boyd Cordner after it was revealed a foot injury he picked up in Game One of the Holden State of Origin series was worse than first thought.
The Roosters back-rower had initially been ruled out for 4-6 weeks, but there were reports on Monday evening that Cordner could be sidelined for anywhere between 6-12 months if the injury setback requires surgery.
Fellow representative forward and Roosters teammate Aidan Guerra said he couldn't comment as he didn't know all the details, but was confident Cordner would do everything in his power to limit his time away from the game.
"I think [he's] as well as anyone could be doing," Guerra said of his injured teammate.
"He played really well in that first Origin and that's no secret. It's shattering for anyone to be injured, especially at this time of year. 'Boydo' is no different.
"He's trying to keep his spirits up but he's got a job to do on rehab. If he does it right, he could be back sooner rather than later."
Guerra said now wasn't the time to speculate on how long his teammate would be out for.
"Worst case scenario is always a long time, whether you're talking about a sore ankle or a sore finger," he said. "It's more about what he does in the short term that's going to determine that."
There was better news on fellow Rooster Latrell Mitchell, with the fullback's ankle injury not as bad as first feared.
The 18-year-old hobbled off Allianz Stadium just before half-time and failed to return. Mitchell was a dejected figure in the sheds, but Guerra said that was understandable.
"I think he's alright. It's one of those injuries…anything you haven't had before you sort of automatically think the worst. It's about him and his rehab on that foot and hopefully we'll see him back soon," the Maroons forward said.
"He was [absolutely shattered] and I think the fact that he hasn't really faced an injury like that in first grade…there was a little more worry than you'd usually have.
"He's right to think that, but he's got the side behind him and we're just waiting for him to come back now and we're looking forward to having him back."
Quizzed on whether he thought the boom rookie would be fit to play the Melbourne Storm on Saturday night, Guerra said: "I'm not too sure. I wouldn't think so, but you never know."
Roosters prop Sam Moa is hopeful halfback Mitchell Pearce will recover in time from a calf strain ahead of this weekend's crucial clash against the high-flying Victorians.
Pearce missed the 14-point win over the Tigers after picking up the injury at training last week but should be in calculations for an early return.
"I can see he's a little bit frustrated with the injuries that he's picked up. But he's in very good spirits actually. He knows it's part of being a football player," Moa said.
"Mitchell being Mitchell, I think he's just too fast for his own good sometimes at training and he's stepping around and yelling at us, telling us where to go on the field and then he just put his hand up and hobbled enough and then our physios got to him and he just sat there with a smile on his face with an ice pack around his calf.
"Luckily enough it's not a really bad strain, it's just one that's annoying enough to threaten to turn into a big one. We've got great medical staff here and great physios that are going to monitor him and hopefully after a week or two he'll be back."
The Roosters front rower confirmed he would be fine to take on the Storm despite collecting a stray elbow just above his left eye on the weekend.
"Yeah it's only four stitches but I was hoping if it was anything less than two to three, I wouldn't have got any. It doesn't deserve to be stitched up if it's anything less than two stitches," the tough man joked.
"I copped a stray elbow, my missus wasn't too happy…another scar to the noggin. But my daughter still recognised me so that's the main thing."
