Dearden suffered the painful injury in the 48-4 rout of the Warriors in Townsville on Friday night and will not feature in this Saturday’s crucial clash with Souths at Accor Stadium or the final-round fixture against premiers Penrith.
The Cowboys need to win both games to ensure they host their opening playoff game by finishing second ahead of the fast-finishing Sharks and Storm.
Dearden, who made his debut for Queensland in Origin III, is no certainty to be right for the first week of the finals.
His absence means Scott Drinkwater will likely revert to the halves alongside Chad Townsend with Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow earning a call-up from the interchange at fullback.
The Rabbitohs are set to receive a boost for their showdown with the Cowboys with Tom Burgess (groin) and Kodi Nikorima (hamstring) likely to be available.
Seventh-placed Souths could still drop out of the finals if they can’t beat the Cowboys or Roosters in the closing rounds.
Brisbane’s chances of qualifying for the finals hinge on Thursday’s home clash with Parramatta and they are sweating on the fitness of second-rower Kurt Capewell, who limped off with an ankle injury in the heavy loss to Melbourne on Friday.
Tapine best forward in NRL: Starling
Canberra hooker Tom Starling has declared his teammate Joe Tapine the best forward in the NRL after the prop helped to set up the try that kept their season alive.
The Raiders and Newcastle were locked up at 22 points apiece in the final 10 minutes on Sunday when Josh Papalii broke the line and connected with Tapine.
Still with work to do, Tapine ducked around Anthony Milford and drew in two defenders before lobbing an overarm pass to Jack Wighton, who dived over to score.
The crucial try assist allowed the Raiders to stretch out to a six-point lead that ultimately sealed victory and kept them in touch with the top eight approaching the last fortnight of the regular season.
Tapine is having just as impressive a year on the stats sheet: he is ranked in the top three among props for offloads and tackle busts and has run for more metres than any front-rower this season, adding 175 more to his tally on Sunday.
“He’s the best forward in the comp at the moment,” Starling said after the Raiders’ 28-22 win. “I don’t think anyone can argue with that. He’s had a hell of a season and he’s only going to keep getting better.”
Tapine missed his first game of the season in round 22 after suffering a rib injury the week prior.
As the Raiders’ finals hopes hung in the balance, Tapine left the field in visible discomfort against Penrith.
“The first three days I was in a bit of pain and I ruled myself out for three weeks,” Tapine said with a laugh. “But I came good after a week, so I’m happy.”
The Raiders will be glad he did; the Penrith pack monstered Canberra’s after Tapine left the field but in his first game back against Newcastle, the script was flipped.
Tapine said his form had come on the back of growing up and taking a different approach to his work.
“I’ve matured a bit,” he said. “I think I’m a bit more professional (with) everything in the week: prep, training, diet, everything that goes into being a footy player.
“It’s a lot of things combined, I can’t put it down to one thing. I’m happy with my performance and I’ve got to keep growing.”
Leave a Reply