The New Zealand Warriors have been hit by a new double injury blow, with Dallin Watene-Zelezniak suffering a reported syndesmosis injury, and Marata Niukore failing to see out Saturday afternoon's surprise loss to the Penrith Panthers after suffering a concussion.
Both players went down with injuries in the first half.
Niukore has some certainty around his return timeline, provided concussion symptoms do not persist after he was involved in a nasty headclash attempting to make a tackle during the first half.
The clash left him bloodied, and he would be ruled out of the game shortly afterwards.
Under NRL concussion rules, he will be out for at least 11 days. It means he is a guarantee to miss next weekend's trip to Brisbane where the Warriors will face the Brisbane Broncos, but should be free to return in Round 19 at home after a bye against the Wests Tigers.
Watene-Zelezniak, who has already missed significant chunks of time this year, is far less certain about his return date after going down with an ankle injury.
It was reported at halftime that the injury was a syndesmosis, with scans needed to confirm the severity of the blow.
A short-term, low-grade syndesmosis not requiring surgery could see him back within the next month, but if surgery is required, he could a significant length of time, putting the remainder of his season in doubt.
He only returned from his previous injury in Round 10, with the game against Penrith in Auckland on Saturday his sixth of the season.
Warriors halfback Luke Metcalf also seemed to be battling a leg injury during the second half.
