Dragons centre Moses Suli was ruled out of the ANZAC Day clash with Sydney Roosters after suffering a head knock in the opening tackle.
Suli was sent reeling out of a heavy collision while trying to tackle Roosters prop Jared Waerea-Hargreaves as the Kiwis veteran returned the ball from the kick-off.
The loss of Suli thrust Jack de Belin into action from the bench almost immediately, with Tom Eisenhuth shifting to left centre.
The Roosters, meanwhile, lost veteran centre Michael Jennings just before halftime with a suspected triceps injury.
Jennings came from the field in the 39th minute holding his left arm and was ruled out during the interval.
Knights skipper Kalyn Ponga is expected to miss the next three months of the season, following successful surgery on his foot in Sydney.
The surgery was completed on April 23, following Ponga suffering the Lisfranc injury in the Round 7 loss to the Bulldogs, with Knights director of football Peter Parr confirming the club now expects to be without him for approximately 12 weeks.
“Everybody is happy with how [the surgery] progressed… he’ll play football again this year, so he’s very positive about that and that’s some good news for him,” Parr said.
In better news the Knights welcome back centre Dane Gagai in Round 8 after he missed the loss to the Bulldogs with a calf injury.
Meanwhile the Dragons and Roosters have both lost players ahead of their traditional ANZAC Day clash.
Winger Mikaele Ravalawa was a late withdrawal for the Dragons after suffering knee soreness following their Round 7 win against the Warriors.
Meanwhile, Victor Radley has been sidelined with hamstring strain and Daniel Tupou will also miss the Round 8 clash after sustaining a hyperextension injury to the knee, despite scans clearing the veteran winger of serious injury.
The Broncos meanwhile will be without playmaker Ezra Mam and centre Selwyn Cobbo in ANZAC Round due to injuries picked up in Round 7.
Mam will miss Saturday’s trip to face Wests Tigers at Campbelltown Sports Stadium due to a finger issue, while Cobbo has a shoulder complaint.
