Gutherson, Addo-Carr suffer injury setbacks for final round
Brydens Lawyers NSW Blues duo Josh Addo-Carr and Clint Gutherson are set to miss at least the final round of the regular season after suffering leg injuries during Saturday night’s match between the Melbourne Storm and the Parramatta Eels.
Both players were assisted from the field in the second half and are being rested as a precaution according to their respective coaches with the NRL Finals Series less than a fortnight away.
Addo-Carr suffered his injury after taking a run from his own end before clutching at his hamstring as he walked off the field in the 48th minute.
Storm coach Craig Bellamy touched on the injury in his post-match press conference, admitting the winger may “struggle to play” in the next two weeks.
“Josh is not too bad I don’t think, but it’s only two weeks until finals,” Bellamy said.
“He’s got a hamstring problem and he’ll struggle to play without a doubt.”
As for Gutherson, the Parramatta fullback came from the field with what appeared a knee complaint but the Eels managed to hold on for a 22-10 win.
Eels coach Brad Arthur told SEN radio on Monday that Gutherson would not play in Round 25 alongside several other senior players who are being rested prior to the NRL Finals Series.
Remarkably, Gutherson has not missed a game since making his return from an ACL rupture in Round 6, 2018, amassing 91 consecutive NRL appearances and three games for NSW in the 2020 State of Origin during that time.
“We had a plan in place (to rest players) and plans don’t always go the way you like them to, but fortunately for us we got through that game with the desired result and built a bit of confidence on the back of the Cowboys,” Arthur said.
“The plan was to rest probably seven or eight of them and ‘Gutho’ (Clint Gutherson) was one of them.
“A lot of our boys have played every game and I feel like the last couple of years we’ve had momentum going into the finals and it hasn’t really made difference, so we’ve got the momentum that we need.
“Now it’s about giving the rest of the playing group an opportunity to get some footy under their belt in case we need them in the finals.”