He may look set for shoulder surgery but skipper Gareth Widdop has been backed to help St George Illawarra continue their giant-killing NRL finals run.
Create a free account to read this article
or signup to continue reading
England international Widdop looks set to play no further part in the Dragons' campaign after he re-injured his shoulder in Sunday's shock 48-18 NRL elimination final romp over Brisbane.
Dragons high performance boss Nathan Pickworth admitted a shoulder reconstruction was likely for the Englishman this week.
"He will have follow up scans and more than likely going to surgery as soon as possible," he told the Dragons website.
But Dragons coach Paul McGregor insists Widdop will still play a key support role as the joint venture dares to dream of another upset in Saturday's semi-final clash with South Sydney.
Widdop looks set to be a calming influence on maligned halfback Ben Hunt as the Dragons try to keep their surprise finals run going.
"He's in a lot of pain but he will do everything he can to help the team win next week, even though he won't be on the footy field," McGregor said.
The coach hailed Widdop for simply taking the field after nursing the shoulder injury on the sidelines for the past three weeks.
The five-eighth endured almost an hour of pain as physios tried to pop his shoulder back in after he re-injured the joint in a 55th-minute tackle.
"His shoulder didn't go in until after the siren," McGregor said.
"When I went downstairs after the bell had gone and he'd been off the field for a very long time, his shoulder was still out."
Pickworth defended the Dragons fielding Widdop with a vulnerable shoulder.
"Gaz did really well to get himself up for this game. He worked very hard on his shoulder to get it as good as it could be," he said.
"Unfortunately it just couldn't take the full 80 minutes."
The Dragons appeared to pay a high price for their first finals win since they claimed the 2010 premiership, with NSW lock Jack de Belin (ankle) and England prop James Graham (concussion) also failing to finish.
However, Pickworth sounded confident both would play the Rabbitohs despite de Belin again being relegated to a moon boot.
Battling ankle syndesmosis, de Belin started for the Dragons against the Broncos after spending the week on crutches, with just a light run on Friday.
Pickworth backed de Belin to do it all again after playing down the NSW lock's aggravated complaint.
"The moment that he had out there may not be as bad as you might think," he said.
The Dragons are keeping their fingers crossed that inspirational front-rower Graham will pass concussion protocols this week.
Australian Associated Press
