The South Sydney Rabbitohs have been by yet another pre-season blow, with young winger Tyrone Munro set to miss up to two months of action.
Munro was set to walk into South Sydney's Round 1 side on the wing, with the youngster making his NRL debut and impressing at the top level at the back-end of 2023.
The 19-year-old outside back's likely promotion into the best 17 at South Sydney was set to end the questions over the back five at the club, with Jack Wighton also arriving to take one of the centre positions of Isaiah Tass.
However, things have rapidly gone pear-shaped for the Redfern-based outfit, who are desperate to turn around a dismal second half of the 2023 campaign where they collapsed from the lead of the competition after 11 rounds to missing the finals.
According to News Corp, Munro has suffered a shoulder injury that could rule him out for two months, and will at the very least sideline him from the club's trip to Las Vegas in Round 1.
That means he joins Campbell Graham on the sideline, with the centre out for up to six months to repair a sternum injury that plagued much of his 2023 season and cost him a State of Origin debut.
Graham's injury already meant Isaiah Tass had received a reprieve into South Sydney's likely best 17, while Munro will now likely be replaced by either Izaac Thompson or the more experienced Taane Milne for the club's opening clash of 2023 in the United States against the Manly Sea Eagles.
Wighton is also out of the Round 1 game suspended, meaning Milne and Thompson may yet both play.
It's also understood there are question marks around Cody Walker, who is battling a calf injury for the match.