Cronulla Sharks fans can breathe a sigh of relief with confirmation that star halfback Nicho Hynes will not miss the remainder of the season.
Hynes was a late exclusion for Sunday afternoon's game against the Newcastle Knights after being reported to have picked up a quad injury during the week.
Coach Craig Fitzgibbon, who has his side in contention for a spot in the top four, and regardless with a spot in the finals all but locked in, confirmed that was the case, but said it was a slight injury before suggesting the half would be able to return next week.
"Just a slight quad injury through training. He got through the majority of the session the other day but it flared up.
"At this stage of the season, it's kind of a risky ball game to throw him out there, and with a bit more time we might have been able to do that, but it's not worth it at this stage of the season, so we will take the safest bet there," Fitzgibbon told the media after the club's captain's run on Saturday.
"We are pretty confident next week [he will be able to return]."
Hynes, who took out last year's Dally M Medal, has rediscovered his top form in recent weeks alongside Braydon Trindall in the halves and will be critical for Cronulla's run through the finals.
Fitzgibbon admitted if it had been the opening week of the finals this weekend, the Sharks may well have risked playing Hynes in an attempt to get over the line.
"Yeah, we might have pushed that a bit. Depends on the functionality there was. He still trained so it wasn't enough to stop him, so we might have pushed that, but we still thought it was too soon," the coach said.
Should Hynes return for Round 27, then it will be a critical clash against the Canberra Raiders in the final match of the season, with both sides still likely fighting for positioning in the top eight, and in the case of the Raiders, potentially their spot in the finals.
