Superstar winger Valentine Holmes has confirmed he'll be a certain starter for the Sharks when they take on the Roosters this weekend at Southern Cross Group Stadium.
The 21-year-old limped off ANZ Stadium in the arms of a trainer following Monday night's 12-6 loss to the Rabbitohs – Cronulla's third defeat in a row – with an ankle injury.
Replays couldn't quite capture the incident in detail, but Holmes confirmed that it took place in the final play of the game as he tried in vain to stop Rabbitohs winger Joe Burgess from scoring.
Holmes admitted he feared he had done something serious, but scans later revealed he was in the clear.
It was the first real injury scare of his budding career, but Holmes said there was nothing to worry about.
"It was just a little roll, it wasn't anything too serious," he said ahead of Cronulla's training session on Wednesday afternoon.
"I was definitely worried. I've never done an ankle or anything like that before. It definitely did hurt a lot but luckily enough it's nothing too serious.
"I just rolled it on the outside of it. The physio said it was just a sprain. I had an ultrasound on it and nothing came up so it's just a bit of swelling but that's all gone down now so it's pretty much back to normal.
"The physio has done a really good job so far and I'm back training tonight so we'll see how it pulls up."
His inclusion is a huge boost for the Sharks who also welcome back skipper Paul Gallen (calf) and winger Sosaia Feki (groin) for Saturday night's clash.
Holmes – who has scored 17 tries in 2016 – was kept relatively quiet by the Bunnies on Monday night, with he and centre partner Jack Bird combining for three errors and zero line breaks in greasy conditions at the Olympic Stadium.
It was a frustrating night for the Sharks with emotions spilling over at the death when a quickly-taken line dropout by James Maloney failed to go 10 metres, gifting the Rabbitohs a penalty from close range.
Bird was clearly disappointed with the attempted restart given several Cronulla players were unmarked and poised to gain valuable territory had they regathered the ball.
As a result, the NSW Blues rookie unleashed a verbal tirade on his State of Origin teammate. It wasn't a great look, but Holmes said it was nothing personal.
"It's just his passion for the game. He takes his game real serious," he said.
"It's just like everyone; everyone blows up. It's not that he was blowing up at anyone, it's just the fact that we were losing. That's how he is."
Video first featured at sharks.com.au
