Connor Tracey looms as the man most likely to fill Josh Addo-Carr’s boots in Canterbury’s backline, as the Bulldogs brace for a period without their star winger.
Addo-Carr was due to go for scans on his injured shoulder after Saturday evening’s NRL loss to Parramatta, amid fears he had broken something in the joint or bone.
Canterbury are unlikely to find out until later on Sunday the full extent of the damage, but already fear they could be without their best attacking threat.
After missing six weeks last year to a syndesmosis injury, another early-season setback for Addo-Carr would come as a serious blow to the Bulldogs.
Their most likely option would be to bring former Cronulla utility Tracey on the left wing, allowing Jacob Kiraz to stay at right centre.
Another option would be to hand Bronson Xerri his first NRL game since 2019, having served his four-year ban for performance-enhancing drugs.
“Connor Tracey was our 18th man tonight and he’s ready to go,” Bulldogs coach Cameron Ciraldo said.
“We’ve got a couple of guys there in reserve grade as well.” It’s not ideal losing players, but we’re prepared for it.”
Addo-Carr was hurt in the seventh minute in a tackle from Bryce Cartwright, but played on until halftime in clear discomfort.
But Ciraldo said there had been no need to remove the NSW State of Origin winger from the field early.
“I didn’t know it was that bad until halftime,” Ciraldo explained.
“You’ve got to play injured sometimes. Everyone out there has played with injuries, and some are worse than others. For Foxx to be able to get through to halftime is a massive testament to his courage and him putting the team first and setting a great example for the rest of the team.”
The Bulldogs spent the majority of the match on the back foot, courageously defending their line for almost the entire first half before scoring two tries late.
“I couldn’t have been prouder of them. We were really tough, gritty,” Ciraldo said.
“Killed ourselves at times with errors and penalties. I was really happy with the pre-season, the way they’ve come together, how hard they’ve worked. The last piece of the puzzle is going out and see how they react to adversity. And there was plenty of that in the first half. We handled it brilliantly.
“We’re always going to be a little bit clunky in attack to start the season with a new team and new systems … Our attack will get better every week.”
