Queensland forward Pat Carrigan and centre Gehamat Shibasaki have both been ruled out of the second State of Origin clash, delivering significant injury blows to the Maroons and their NRL club Brisbane.
Carrigan left the Brisbane dressing rooms in a moonboot after their 30-26 loss to St George Illawarra, and scans have confirmed a syndesmosis injury expected to sideline him for three to four weeks. Shibasaki, who was on the six-man bench and did not play in the Maroons' narrow 22-20 loss to NSW in Sydney on Wednesday night, was diagnosed with a grade two MCL injury after the Dragons clash and will miss five to six weeks.
That timeframe will rule him out of the entire Origin series. Carrigan, who came off the bench for Queensland in Sydney, has played 13 Origin games in a row since his 2022 debut. He played the first 32 minutes against the Dragons before being replaced, then returned for just 10 more minutes after a stint on the exercise bike.
"It's some sort of ankle sprain," Broncos coach Michael Maguire said post-match. "Patty felt he was OK to go back out there, they assessed him and strapped him up, but you could just sense he was struggling a little bit."
The Maroons have several options to replace Carrigan. Reuben Cotter played second-row in Sydney but is equally at home in the middle. Queensland could use him as a middle and elevate Dolphins second-rower Kulikefu Finefeuiaki, who was 20th man in game one. North Queensland second-rower Heilum Luki is another option if they go down that path. Finefeuiaki and Luki are yet to make their Origin debuts.
If the Maroons opt for a straight middle replacement, Dolphins co-captain Tom Gilbert, Canberra warhorse Corey Horsburgh, and Gold Coast prop Moeaki Fotuaika are all former Queensland players who could be called upon. Gilbert can also play on an edge, and AAP understands he is ahead of Fotuaika and Horsburgh in the pecking order at this stage, given his stellar displays for the Maroons in 2022 and 2023 before missing most of the next two seasons with injury. Horsburgh was outstanding up front in the Raiders' 26-12 win over the Cowboys on Sunday, running for 165 metres from 18 charges with 27 tackles and just one missed.
The Maroons selectors will pick the side after round 14 is completed this Sunday.
