Adam Doueihi was named on the extended team list for the Wests Tigers after a shoulder injury had him sidelined since Round 10.
The Lebanese international dislocated his right shoulder in the act of scoring a try in Round 9, and has been rehabilitating the injury since then, joining a number of stars on the casualty ward.
Doueihi, along with the club, was in electric form before injury struck the halfback down, with the Tigers struggling to reach those heights without their chief playmaker following the opening two months of the competition.
Piquing the interest of many Tigers fans, coach Benji Marshall has explained what his return to the team-list actually means for their weekend's fixture against the Dolphins.
“It's a long shot. He'll do some work today, but we're not banking on it,” Marshall told media on Thursday whether Doueihi will be a late inclusion.
“If not this week, it'll be next week.”
Marshall's star hooker Apisai Koroisau will also be fit to back-up from State of Origin duties, given he didn't get a single minute of game time for the NSW Blues in Game 2 on Wednesday.
To the shock of many Blues fans, coach Laurie Daley let Reece Robson see out the full eighty minutes despite a fresh Koroisau ready to go, and the side desperately looking for quick points throughout the second half.
“I'm not getting dragged into that, I'm not getting dragged into that,” Marshall added.
“We were probably expecting Api to play last night, so we planned a little bit differently. Now that he didn't play, he'll be right to play for us, so we'll just play it by ear.
“He brings professionalism, energy, and experience every week, and we're going to need that experience this week. We're looking forward to having him back. He'll be fresh; he got 30 grand for playing no minutes. Highest paid player last night.”
Local Tigers junior Josese Lanyon was named on the bench to cover for Koroisau after a solid debut against the Gold Coast Titans in the final Leichhardt Oval game on Sunday.
The young gun hooker made 38 tackles in the middle in his 56-minute stint, delivering excellent service to his halves on both sides of the ruck.
The Tigers will host the high-flying Dolphins outfit out west at Campbelltown Sports Stadium on Saturday.
