The Brisbane Broncos could go into their clash with the Cronulla Sharks at Suncorp Stadium on Saturday evening without second rower Jordan Riki.
Riki was originally named to start in the second row fr the clash, as he has done for each of the last five games in Kevin Walters' side.
He had been relegated to the bench prior to that with TC Robati bursting onto the scene, however, an injury for Robati allowed Riki back into the starting side and he hasn't looked back, playing 80 minutes in each of those games, also scoring two tries in the last five weeks.
Second-row
Tackles Made
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Tackle Breaks
Riki limped off from training at the Broncos' captain's run on Friday morning ahead of the clash.
The second rower is still a chance of playing, with Kevin Walters telling the media it was a 60-40 chance.
Jordan Riki has limped from Broncos training with ankle injury - Walters says heโs 60/40 chance of playing. Brendan Piakura now on standby for debut off the bench. #NRL pic.twitter.com/FXtvn8mI6L
— Veronica Eggleton (@veggleton) August 27, 2021
If Riki is ruled out of the clash, it will mean Robati returns to the starting side from his current position on the bench, which would then bring young gun Brendan Piakura onto the bench.
Piakura is viewed as one of the brightest young talents in the game, and while he, as yet, hasn't cracked first grade, the young enforcer did serve as 18th man in the Round 9 clash to the North Queensland Cowboys.
The Broncos needed to spend a reported $1.2 million over a three-year period to keep Piakura at the club when he re-signed earlier this season.
The youngster has made five appearances for the Norths Devils at Queensland Cup level this season, scoring three tries, making four line breaks and nine tackle busts.
It is a must-win clash for the Sharks, who currently sit in eighth spot on the NRL ladder, but face the Melbourne Storm in the final round.
With a logjam on the table, it means the Sharks will need to potentially win both games to qualify for the top eight, with other results needing to go their way should they only win one.
Teams for the Broncos and Sharks clash will be trimmed from 21 to 19 at 5:30pm this evening, 24 hours ahead of kick-off.