Ben Hunt has confirmed he is ‘definitely not in the picture’ for the State of Origin series opener after suffering a hamstring injury in Brisbane’s 22-14 loss to South Sydney on Friday night.
However, fellow Queenslander Tino Fa’asuamaleaui is in the clear after avoiding a ban for his high shot.
Hunt suffered the first hamstring injury of his long career on Friday night and immediately left the field.
“I knew it wasn’t a cramp or something like that, it felt a bit more than that. I knew something was pretty wrong straight away,” he told Code Sports.
The Broncos booked the 35-year-old playmaker in for scans in Brisbane on Saturday afternoon to determine the severity of his injury.
But even before meeting with the medicos, Hunt was pessimistic about his chances of featuring in Billy Slater’s team for Origin I on May 28.
“It definitely hurts,” he said.
“Whether Billy was going to have me in there again or not, I’m unsure, but it’s definitely disappointing to know that you’re definitely not in the picture.”
Hunt has been one of Queensland’s most consistent performers in recent years and was awarded their player of the series in 2021.
He has typically played as a back-up hooker at Origin level, with Slater now needing to look elsewhere if he wants cover for likely No.9 Harry Grant.
It comes as Brisbane coach Michael Maguire has refused to guarantee Ezra Mam’s NRL exile will end next week even after an injury to back-up five-eighth Ben Hunt.
Hunt limped up the tunnel in the second half of Brisbane’s 22-14 loss to South Sydney on Friday after suffering a hamstring injury that looks likely to have ended his 10-week stint in the starting side.
Ben Hunt. (Photo by Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images)
The veteran recruit had been deputising for Mam during the five-eighth’s nine-game ban for drug driving, a ban that officially ended this week.
Mam will make his return to the field with Queensland Cup side Souths Logan against Western Clydesdales this Sunday.
Maguire previously declined to put a timeline on Mam’s return and did not change his posture at full-time on Friday despite Hunt’s injury.
“I’ll go through this game before we get to that,” said a terse Maguire.
Hunt will go for scans on the weekend but was walking without assistance at full-time.
Maguire was unsure of the injury’s severity immediately after the game.
“I didn’t actually chat to the docs after the game, but I’ll assess that when I go back,” he said.
No other fit half in the Broncos’ top-30 squad compares to Mam, the Broncos’ best player in their 2023 grand final loss and a likely Queensland representative of the future.
Jock Madden, who filled in for the injured Adam Reynolds last season, would be the leading contender if Maguire was set on not picking Mam.
Uncapped teen Coby Black, rated a future star, and journeyman Perth product Josh Rogers are the remaining playmakers available for next Sunday’s home clash with St George Illawarra.
Brisbane captain and halfback Reynolds pointed out Mam still had a game to play before any decision could be made.
“Like ‘Madge’ said, we’ll review this game,” Reynolds said.
“(Mam) has been training well but he’s still got a game to get through.”
Maguire was visibly frustrated at full-time on Friday night after the Broncos gave up a 14-point half-time lead and conceded 22 unanswered points in the final stanza.
The loss is the Broncos’ second in a row following a dismaying 32-8 loss to Penrith at Magic Round.
“We need to have a look at ourselves in the mirror and say, ‘Well what do you need to do, what do I need to do to make sure that we get it done?’,” Maguire said.
“We show signs of what we can do but that’s irrelevant if you don’t do it for 80 minutes.”
Meanwhile, Maroons forward Tino Fa’asuamaleaui has escaped sanction by the Match Review Panel after hitting the Knights’ forward Leo Thompson high in the opening minute of their comeback 24-20 win in Newcastle.
However, there were four charges from Friday night’s matches, all receiving monetary fines.
Newcastle’s Kai Pearce-Paul and Phoenix Crossland face $1800 fines for separate Grade 1 Careless High Tackle offences, with teammate Brodie Jones charged with a $1000 fine with an early guilty plea, for a Grade 1 Crusher Tackle.
In the other game, Broncos forward Xavier Willison faces an $1800 fine for a Careless High Tackle, which is his second offence of this nature.
– with AAP
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