Wallaby-turned-Titan Carter Gordon is nearing a return from a health scare that derailed his rugby league initiation, with hope alive he will be fit to play in the final month of the NRL season.
Australia’s 2023 Rugby World Cup five-eighth joined Sydney Roosters flyer Mark Nawaqanitawase as a high-profile code defector last year, with the former showing promising signs for Tweed Seagulls.
Twenty-four-year-old Gordon was pushing for a regular spot at the Gold Coast Titans, while announcing himself as the long-term successor to veteran half Kieran Foran, before suffering a spinal issue.
Carter Gordon at the Rugby World Cup.Credit: Getty Images
Gordon struggled with back spasms and headaches following an innocuous carry in the preseason before it was found he had suffered a cerebrospinal fluid leak – a condition affecting the fluid surrounding the brain and spinal cord.
While it was initially hoped the Brisbane Boys College product would not need surgery, he went under the knife in May and has resumed running.
It remains a scant hope for Gordon to make his NRL debut, with his return likely to come through the Queensland Cup, but he is expected to resume contact training in the near future.
Titans halfback Tom Weaver remained optimistic, as he lamented what might have been.
“He had a massive preseason – he was one of our fittest, one of our strongest, and he would have had a cracking year,” Weaver said.
“It’s just a bit unlucky and unfortunate for him, but he works that hard. He’ll end up getting his body right, and he’ll be back in there, I’m sure of it.”
Gordon’s woes have come in a challenging year for his family, after his younger brother Mason was forced to retire from the Queensland Reds due to ongoing symptoms from a preseason concussion.
The 22-year-old worked towards earning his qualifications in property economics while receiving medical advice, before announcing in May his career was over after earning four Queensland caps in off-season contests.
“The word I think comes to everyone’s mind is ‘selfless’, whatever you ask of Mason it’s never too much,” Reds winger Lachie Anderson said of the younger Gordon brother.
“He’s a very team-first guy and just a good bloke to have around the locker room. It’s a great loss for us, but I’m really looking forward to seeing his journey, supporting him and watching that unfold.
“Mason’s a very calm guy, and very positive. Obviously, you don’t like to see anyone go through what he’s been going through the last few months, but … he knows he’s got the support of everyone.”
How the elder Gordon performs upon his comeback could have ramifications for Weaver, who comes off contract at the end of 2025 but has been parachuted into the Titans side to replace Jayden Campbell (concussion).
It will be a baptism of fire for the Palm Beach Currumbin alumnus, who has managed just 10 games since his 2023 debut, as the Gold Coast sit dead last ahead of Sunday’s clash against the Cowboys.
They also remain without marquee forward David Fifita, who has been tipped to make his comeback from an ankle issue against the Brisbane Broncos in round 19.
Weaver’s looming battle without two of the club’s biggest names comes as conjecture around coach Des Hasler’s future continues to mount, while the Gold Coast have been linked to off-contract halfback Toby Sexton.
Sexton has guided the Bulldogs to the top of the ladder, but his career is now engulfed in uncertainty following the recruitment of Lachlan Galvin.
Yet while Weaver declared the playing group had Hasler’s support – stressing “all the boys are backing him big time, and we’re trying to play for him as much as we are trying to play for ourselves” – he was undeterred by speculation of a Sexton homecoming.
“I don’t read into it too much, I just focus on what I’m doing here and doing as best as I can to try and stay here, or pick up something else,” Weaver said.
“Toby’s been playing great footy, it shows where they are on the ladder with their team, so wherever Toby ends up I wish him all the best, but I’m just focusing on myself and trying to get myself sorted.
“It’s in my hands, the way I play will determine the outcome of where my career goes from the end of this year. But I’m really confident in what I can do on the football field.”
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