Melbourne Storm and Queensland-origin fans are facing concerns after scans on a hamstring injury to star winger Xavier Coates have confirmed that he will be on the sidelines for 6-8 weeks.
Xavier Coates' injury, which he sustained during Melbourne Storm's gritty 16-6 victory over the Canberra Raiders, has reignited fears as it's a recurrence of a previous hamstring issue from round eight.
The injury cast a shadow over what should have been a celebratory night for Coates who was marking his 50th game for the Storm.
The timing is particularly troubling with the deciding State of Origin game against New South Wales just a little over two weeks away.
The hamstring issue is not new for Coates, who has had several similar injuries.
The Storm's victory over the Raiders was far from polished and brought to light the team's ongoing struggle with injuries to key players. With experienced members of the squad sidelined, coach Craig Bellamy has had to rely on youth stocks such as Sua Fa'alogo and Jack Howarth .
“Out of our spine, Hughesy (Jahrome Hughes) was the only one that played tonight,” Bellamy pointed out while praising the team's determination.
“The guys have to take a lot of credit from just the resilience that they've shown. I can't remember too many pretty wins that we've had this year. They've just hung in there and got the job done.”
Reflecting on the team's position, Bellamy expressed a mix of pride and disbelief.
“I am proud of that and I know the players are proud of that and it's sort of hard to believe we are where we are on the table with some of the games that we've played, but like I said some of them have been ugly, but we've just found a way.”