Jahrome Hughes may be on track to return to the field this week, but the Melbourne Storm halfback is set to miss the 2025 Pacific Championships against Samoa and Tonga.
Suffering a fractured forearm and a shoulder injury recently, the Storm halfback has faced back-to-back setbacks over the past couple of months, which have seen him miss multiple matches due to being on the sidelines.
As he prepares to return for Friday night's match against the Cronulla Sharks, The Courier-Mail reports that he has subsequently been ruled out of the 2025 Pacific Championships.
It is understood that the reason behind his absence is due to the 2024 Dally M Medal winner needing to undergo shoulder surgery.
"The treatment is pretty straightforward – it is to go in and fix that radius (bone), and do an operation to put it back together, like a carpenter fixing a broken bit of wood and putting it back straight and perfectly aligned," Doctor Andrew Oppy told The Daily Telegraph about Hughes making his potential return in the preliminary final.
"He has a plate and screws in there, which are thick and strong, and holding it together. Really, now, and this is where the aggressive side of treatment comes in, it is really relying on that plate and screws.
"His bone hasn't healed back together yet, and we are relying on that plate and screws to support that while he is using it and the bones are healing back together.
"A normal healing process would be somewhere in the realm of 12 weeks. But because the plate and screws are in there, we know it is strong enough to get things moving again very quickly.
"The radius is going well, and it is going to be a discussion now – it is a risk/reward situation. And the risks are that he may re-break it, or the plate and screws may pull off.
"If that is the case, he may require further surgery. Obviously, the reward is that he gets to return early and potentially okay in a final or even a grand final."
