After tearing his ACL on Thursday night against the Sydney Roosters, Manly forward Matt Lodge is set to be offered an NRL lifeline.
Competing against his former club on Thursday, all eyes were on Lodge to make an immediate impact on the game. Instead, it unfortunately turned into a disaster for the front rower, which will now see him face a long road back to running out onto the NRL field.
The injury couldn't have occurred at a worse time for the club and Lodge. The injury will see him join fellow forwards Josh Aloiai (shoulder), Sean Keppie (back) and Taniela Paseka (knee) on the sidelines as the Sea Eagles aim to clinch a top-eight finals spot heading into the last few games of the season.
Signed to a train-and-trial deal worth $1000 per week since joining the Roosters as a mid-season acquisition, Lodge has been playing for his future in the past few weeks as he is not contracted for the 2024 season. A recovery of at least nine months means that he will only become available for the second half of next season.
Despite this, Manly Chief Executive Tony Mestov supplied a strong hint that Lodge will still be offered a contract with the Manly Sea Eagles for next season, applauding his impact on the playing group and the younger forwards in the team.
“Matt has fitted in extremely well since joining the club and he's been great for our younger players,” Mestrov told The Sydney Morning Herald.
“He's shown enough in the few games he's played with us and this injury won't sway our thinking when looking at our roster for next year.”
The Manly Sea Eagles sit in tenth place on the NRL ladder and one win could see them jump to as high a sixth on the table as of Saturday morning.
Taking on the in-form Penrith Panthers and New Zealand Warriors in the next to weeks, they will finish their season off with the Bulldogs and Tigers