Sydney Roosters and New South Wales State of Origin back Joseph Suaalii has confirmed he will accept an early guilty plea for the devastating high tackle that knocked Queensland fullback Reece Walsh out of State of Origin 1.
Walsh, who was graded to have had Category 1 concussion symptoms will now spend 11 days on the sideline at a minimum as he works through the NRL's concussion return-to-play protocols.
Suaalii, meanwhile, was sent off for the tackle in just the eighth minute of his State of Origin debut and was hit with a Grade 2 reckless high tackle charge by the NRL's match review committee following the game.
That charge came with a four-match ban for Suaalii if he decided to take the early guilty plea, which he has now done. He would have risked a fifth match being added onto his suspension if he headed to the NRL judiciary, whether he was fighting for a not-guilty plea or a downgrade.
Some suggestions were that Suaalii may have elected to do just that and ask for the tackle to be graded as careless, which could have seen his suspension time cut in half by two weeks.
The four-match ban will see Suaalii - who is in his final year as an NRL player before heading to rugby union - miss games in Round 15 against the Parramatta Eels, Round 16 against the Canterbury Bulldogs, Round 17 against the Wests Tigers and Round 18 against the St George Illawarra Dragons.
His earliest return date for the Roosters will be following the club's Round 19 bye when they clash with the Melbourne Storm in Round 20.
There is also a chance Suaalii could now play Origin 3, which will take place between Round 19 and Round 20, although whether he is in line for a recall by coach Michael Maguire remains to be seen given he will be forced to miss the second game of the series.
A returning Bradman Best, potential debutant Jesse Ramien and the Origin-experienced Latrell Mitchell are among the most likely options to replace Suaalii for the Blues, while his club will likely turn to Michael Jennings to fill a gap in the backline over the coming weeks, although players like Junior Pauga could also be considered.