Canberra fullback-winger Jordan Rapana will miss the first two weeks of the NRL season after being whacked for a shoulder charge during last night’s All Stars game.
Rapana kickstarted an all-in scuffle during the first half at CommBank Stadium when he failed to wrap his arm around a charging David Fifita.
Fifita had broken the line and then offloaded to his Indigenous All Stars teammate Jesse Ramien for a runaway try, but as he passed he was hit by Rapana’s shoulder.
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The Maori All Stars fullback had shot across the field in an effort to stop his hulking opponent, but failed to get his arm around Fifita’s body during the tackle motion.
Rapana then erred again when he made a similar hit on Ramien soon after.
The incident infuriated Indigenous enforcer Andrew Fifita, who charged in to confront Rapana before every other player on the field joined the fracas.
Fifita and Rapana were both sin binned, but the NRL’s match review committee has also hit Rapana with a grade one shoulder charge offence.
He today accepted the charge and will miss two games. He will be available for the Raiders again in Round 3.
David Fifita, meanwhile, reportedly suffered rib cartilage damage from the incident and looks set for a stint on the sidelines, although is expected to be fit for Round 1 next month.
Indigenous All Stars teammates Josh Curran and Will Smith were both concussed during the six-point loss to Maori.