After suffering a lisfranc foot injury that threatened to end his season before it began, Luke Thompson may be running out alongside his team-mates a lot sooner than initially thought.
Thompson suffered a mishap at training on Tuesday after the prop ran at Willie Mason and Mark O'Meley, who were armed with bumper pads, and ended in the Englishman dropping to the ground in agony.
Despite being told he'd be sidelined for 'at least six months' following the incident, the news mightn't be as gloomy as first feared for Thompson.
Officials are quietly confident that the 27-year-old can avoid surgery on his foot, which would see the former St Helens forward miss just six to eight weeks as he recovered.
It would prove a significant boost for the Bulldogs who will be without fellow middle Tevita Pangai Junior for the opening month of the competition.
Despite the positive news, Phil Gould shot it down after a fan asked whether he'd return in eight weeks time.
"Doctor report. Luke Thompson suffered Rupturing of the lisfranc ligament and a couple of small mid-foot fractures to lateral cuneiform and cuboid," Gould tweeted.
"He'll require surgical review. Hopefully tight-ropes will be adequate. Likely six months but more if have to put screws through mid-foot."
If Thompson does go under the knife, it'll be the prop's season over, a monumental blow after the front-rower managed just 38 of a possible 60 NRL games since arriving in Australia midway through 2020.
Rookie prop Jayden Tanner has received NRL clearance to make his debut from the bench in lieu of Thompson, while one-gamer Franklin Pele has also snuck onto the bench.
