Corey Norman’s return date revealed

After initially being slated for an extended period on the sidelines following a fractured cheekbone sustained against former club, Dragons five-eighth Corey Norman has been tipped to return from injury within three weeks.

Following long term injuries to key players Korbin Sims and Gareth Widdop, as well as the suspension of Blues lock Jack De Belin, it seemed the Dragons bad luck was set to continue with Norman initially slated to be on the sideline for well over a month.

However, thankfully for the Dragons, Head of Athletic Performance Nathan Pickworth has confirmed that Norman’s surgery went well, and the former Eel will only be facing a three-week stint on the sidelines.

“He’s in good spirits, he had that fracture stabilised in surgery yesterday. The return to play on that is about three weeks.” Pickworth told Dragons.com.au.

“It was a bit of a nasty shot that he got there, and he was in a fair bit of pain during the game and after the game, but the result in terms of the surgical outcome and return to play is all in all not too bad.”

While Norman is sidelined, livewire five-eighth Jai Field has been named to replace Norman in the halves in only his sixth NRL appearance. Renowned for his speed and footwork, Field has undergone a substantial change in body composition in the past two seasons, going from a light 72 kilograms to a more bulked up 85 since bursting onto the scene in the 2017 NRL Auckland Nines.

In another bonus for the red V faithful, Tyson Frizell is also set to take his place in the Dragons line-up for their magic round clash against the Warriors, following a stray finger to the eye in their loss to Parramatta.

“Monday morning his eye was fat and swollen and couldn’t really open it to much. That’s just what happens when you get a deep finger to the eye. You get a bit of swelling around there. He’s improved significantly in the last two days, he’s trained fully today and he’ll be right to take his place this weekend.”