Sydney Roosters coach Trent Robinson has given an update on his injured star halfback Sam Walker.
Walker went down with a syndesmosis injury last weekend in the tri-colours' loss to the Dolphins after his ankle became trapped awkwardly under a defender.
He was quickly aided off the field and underwent surgery on Sunday, with Robinson hoping to get him on the field "as soon as possible".
It is a massive blow to the Roosters' premiership muscle, and they will rely on Daly Cherry-Evans and Hugo Savala to gel for their finals series, which they are expected to go deep into.
The Roosters provided a statement following Walker's surgery, saying he will undergo an intense rehabilitation process in an attempt to get him back playing before the end of the season.
Robinson remains hopeful the Maroons star halfback can return and help deliver a trophy in Bondi for the first time in seven years.
“He got operated on on Sunday afternoon. There's not much to do in the initial sort of phase of recovery there, and then he'll get going pretty quickly. They heal quite quickly those injuries," Robinson said to media on Thursday.
It is fortunate the Roosters can rely on 370-game veteran Daly Cherry-Evans to slide into his preferred halfback position, where he boasts plenty of big-game experience in finals and State of Origin.
Although Robinson is hopeful to return to their similar halves pairing in time before the first weekend of October, if the Roosters' season is still alive.
“There are some pretty clear signposts along the way about games and stuff like that around what's possible," he added.
"We just need to push it as far as he can handle it and see where we get to.”
The Roosters will face arch rivals South Sydney on Friday night, in what is historically a blockbuster fixture.
Although the club has rested a bunch of stars, including Cherry-Evans, Reece Robson, Mark Nawaqanitawase, Suia Wong, Robert Toia, and skipper James Tedesco, to give his key personnel a rest before the intense finals matches begin.
He declared it was "the best thing for the club" in their push for the trophy in 2026, and with a top four position already secured, they can take the gamble if it means his stars are fresh for Week 1.
"The scenario was pretty clear that we were third or fourth, and then trying to pick what was going to happen in one and two… it was all really clear what was the best thing for us this week and what players had played either Origin or a fair amount of time leading up to that game,” he said.
Although Robinson believes the inexperienced team can still do a job on the Rabbitohs, who will play elimination play-offs next weekend.
“That was the clear point, and we have clear belief in what we can achieve tomorrow night with the team. They're all Roosters players, they've been in our system for a long time. We're also really clear about the following week as well.”
The tri-colours will host the Rabbitohs at 8pm at Allianz Stadium on Friday night.
