Newcastle's finals fight has suffered a devastating double blow, with star players Dylan Brown and Dylan Lucas both sustaining possible season-ending injuries in their heartbreaking 23-22 loss to the Sydney Roosters.
Lucas went down in the first half, suffering a dislocated ankle with a suspected fracture after his leg became trapped awkwardly in a tackle involving Roosters Siua Wong.
The severity of the incident was immediately apparent, with players urgently calling for medical assistance before the medi-cab was brought onto the field. Lucas was left in visible discomfort as he received treatment before being taken from the field.
Coach Justin Holbrook said the club were unsure if the ankle was fractured yet, but it was certainly a dislocation.
"It's a dislocation straight away. It's back in which is good, but we need to see how much damage has been done around that which is good," Holbrook said.
"I'm not too sure [whether it's a fracture], but we will see how we go."
Lucas was in contention for a Kangaroos call-up for this year's World Cup, after Hudson Young's season was cut short by an achilles injury.
Despite the loss of their damaging second-rower, the Knights rallied to take a 10-6 lead into half-time.
However, disaster struck again after the break when marquee recruit Dylan Brown went down clutching his knee, with immediate fears of an ACL injury leaving the field straight away.
Brown will now await scans to confirm the extent of his injury, with World Cup ramifications for New Zealand also coming into play.
"The docs and physios are not thinking it's good, but I'll cross me fingers and hope we get some good news ont he scans," Holbrook said, before saying he was hoping it wasn't an ACL.
His departure forced a reshuffle for Newcastle, with Phoenix Crossland moving into the halves alongside Sandon Smith, while Thomas Cant shifted into hooker.
The Knights fought bravely despite the setbacks but were unable to hold on, with Daly Cherry-Evans ultimately breaking Newcastle hearts by slotting the match-winning field goal in the closing stages to secure a 23-22 victory.
The Knights currently sit at sixth on the ladder, four points ahead of the ninth-placed Manly Sea Eagles.
They will play a desperate Broncos side at Suncorp next Saturday.
