South Sydney Rabbitohs coach Jason Demetriou has provided an updated timeline on the injuries of outside backs Campbell Graham and Tyrone Munro.
The Rabbitohs' outside backs depth is relatively thin at the moment as they get ready to face the Manly Sea Eagles in the season opener in Las Vegas, with Graham, Munro, Jack Wighton and Izaac Thompson unable to play in round one.
This has opened up the chance for two of Taane Milne, Richard Kennar and Jacob Gagai, to play alongside Latrell Mitchell, Alex Johnston and Isaiah Tass in the backline.
Although they will be without several elite-calibre players for the time being, Demetriou has revealed that he will not take to the open market to recruit players, with multiple publications reporting rookie winger Jacob Gagai is set to make his NRL debut in Las Vegas.
โIt's no secret we're probably running thin at the moment,'' Demetriou saidย News Corp.
โBut we've got Taane Milne, Richie Kennar and Jacob Gagai, who I'm excited about.
โThe problem is when you go to the open market, you've generally got to bring people in for two or three-year contracts. It's very hard to get a player of the quality you want for 10 weeks or half a season.
โSo we'll back the talent that is coming through and I'm more than happy to back them.
โI'm hopeful that Campbell will come back at some stage during the second half of the season and be bigger and stronger for it.
โFrom Round 3, Jack will be back, which will make a big difference as well. And I think by round five Tyrone Munro will be back.''
While the Rabbitohs fans will have to wait until round three to see Jack Wighton in red and green colours for the first time, Tyrone Munro will be back from round five to be selected for the team after sustaining a knee injury.
However, it isn't all good news for the Rabbitohs, with Demetriou providing an update on former Kangaroo Campbell Graham, stating he will miss the majority of the upcoming season with no real timeline date.
โThe pain he was playing with was extraordinary. Like any bone injury, you want to see it heal," Demetriou said.
โThe specialists wanted to see if they could use an infusion injection to promote healing and the only way you can see that is to give it eight to 10 weeks, to see what difference it makes.
โAnd it had made a difference. Stretchโ (Campbell) was training much better than what he was at the back-end of last season.
โBut the reality was, we had to make a decision as to whether he could get through a season and be in a better head space physically and mentally than what he was last year.
โThe answer was probably, no. His job requires him to be physical and it's probably a good reflection of what these players go through."
