NSW medical staff have revealed how Brian To’o played 48 minutes with a fresh hamstring injury against the Wests Tigers – and the biggest concern was he did it leaping for the ball, something Queensland will intend on making him do all night in Perth.
To’o was rested from training last Thursday – and Canterbury’s Jacob Kiraz brought in to help complete an opposed session – with the Blues saying at the time it was nothing more than a simple case of managing the winger’s workload.
But Blues doctor Nathan Gibbs confirmed on Monday To’o had injured a different part of his left hamstring in the 32nd minute of the Panthers’ defeat of the Tigers.
Replays showed To’o trying to leap for a Nathan Cleary kick, only to land awkwardly before clutching at his left hamstring.
He played the remainder of the game, but then complained of soreness in the upper part of his hamstring.
“Brian had a twinge in his hamstring insertion, which is up near his glute, just before half-time against the Tigers, but he finished the game, only to find it was a bit irritable afterwards,” Gibbs said.
“We’ve had to manage him all week, and physios Eddie [Farah] and Kenny [Michalopoulos] have treated him from a soft-tissue point of view all week.
“Knowing ‘Bizza’ [To’o], and knowing he loves playing injured, he would have played over the weekend had Penrith played.
“He trained on Saturday, did about 3km or 4km of running, and got to 80 per cent speed. He’ll do everything on Monday, and will be OK for Wednesday.”
Gibbs said even though the latest tendon injury was in the same left hamstring, the upper and lower part of the hamstring “work independently of each other”, and there was no risk of suffering further damage in the same leg.
It was not the first time To’o has ignored pain to finish a game for the Panthers. He stayed on the field for six minutes with a hamstring injury against South Sydney at the start of the season, and has admitted that by doing so he made his injury worse.
The moment Brian To’o suffered his latest hamstring injuryCredit: Nine
“It’s my fault, I should have come off straight away. I wanted to be out there with the brothers and help them out where I can,” To’o said before his club return.
The Blues are backing To’o to not only play, but also get through the game unscathed, sparing Kiraz having to fly to the other side of the country to be on standby.
To’o and fellow winger Zac Lomax have been outstanding over the past four games for NSW when charging the ball back early in the tackle count.
After playing just one NRL game before Origin I, To’o ran for more than 200 metres and had more than 20 hit-ups at Suncorp Stadiums.
Brian To’o goes through his paces on Saturday morning.Credit: Jessica Hromas/SMH
But the Maroons did target his left wing, and had success a couple of times in the first half when To’o was forced to leap and spilled the high ball.
To’o knows he needs to be better in that area at Perth’s Optus Stadium, and given the headlines about his fitness, said he would be surprised if Queensland didn’t try their luck against him again.
“It’s a no-brainer for me. I knew they were always going to target me in game one, and all I can do is look forward to the challenge again – I love the pressure,” To’o said.
“It’s my job to catch those high balls, and I’ll be working on that.”
To’o was sin-binned for tackling Xavier Coates in the air right on half-time, and said it was agonising having to watch the start of the second half before he could return. Lomax asked coach Laurie Daley if he could switch sides and defend against Coates on the opposite side of the field before To’o returned.
“I did try to go for the ball, but we both came down safely, and that’s all I cared about [at the time],” To’o said.
“Anything could have happened to start that second half. A lot goes through your mind. You kick yourself, but I’m really grateful the boys held out for 10 minutes.”
Canterbury’s Jacob Preston and 18th man Matt Burton joined the Blues in camp on Monday, with the team to round out their preparations at Tuesday’s captain’s run at Optus Stadium. Victory to NSW will seal their second straight series, and Daley’s first since 2014.
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