There are fresh concerns for Sharks veteran Dale Finucane after the forward was forced out of Cronulla’s 30-10 loss to the Raiders with his fourth head knock in nearly two seasons.
During the second half, Finucane was winding up for the opening hit-up from the kick-off after a Cronulla try, before he was left flattened when his head took a shot from Elliott Whitehead’s shoulder.
Play immediately paused, with referee Liam Kennedy placing Whitehead on report and issuing marching orders.
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“He has been absolutely rocked!” said Broncos great Corey Parker in commentary for Fox League.
“You can’t imagine we will see Dale Finucane back. He’s had a bit of a run with HIAs in this area.”
The incident could result in a fine or suspension, which may leave Whitehead with a case to answer with the match review committee.
“I don’t think I could’ve done much in that situation, it was pretty late contact. I thought it was a bit harsh to get the sin bin,” Whitehead said after the game.
Finucane had recently returned to the Sharks’ lineup after overcoming a concussion suffered in April during a loss against his former side, Melbourne.
The 30-year-old last season missed several games due to concussion.
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Finucane in round 11 last year failed a HIA during a Storm win over Newcastle before suffering another head knock a few months later in round 22 against the Raiders.
“It’s disappointing to lose someone like Dale,” Sharks skipper Wade Graham said after the match.
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“He’s a player that gives other players confidence because you just know how tough he is in the middle, he’s always going to turn up and do his job.”
Meanwhile, the Raiders enjoyed a monster upset after defeating the Sharks.
Despite coming into today’s match with just one win from the past six rounds, the Raiders looked a completely different side, bursting out of the gates to take a 20-0 lead at the main break.
The result is even more impressive given the Raiders were forced to play a man down on three separate occasions due to several sin-binning offences.
At one stage during the second half, with the Sharks at the time attempting to mount a fightback, Canberra was reduced to 11 men.
Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad (34th-minute) and Corey Horsburgh (48) both copped 10-minute stints for professional fouls before Whitehead’s high shot at the 56th-minute landed him in hot water.
“That’s one we’re going to remember for a long time,” Raiders prop Josh Papalii said moments after the win.
“A lot of the time we were down to 11 or 12 men there, the boys really dug deep.”
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