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- Steve Gee
- From: The Daily Telegraph
- April 26, 2011 12:00AM
Set to move into front row...South Sydney's Eddy Pettybourne. Picture: Brett Costello Source: The Daily Telegraph
EMBATTLED South Sydney - their season already hanging by a thread - are facing a front-row crisis.
Sam Burgess (ankle injury) has joined Scott Geddes and Luke Stuart on the sidelines for the best part of the season and there appear to be few back-up options for Rabbitohs coach John Lang ahead of Friday night's crunch game against Cronulla.
Souths released back-up props Jaiman Lowe (Melbourne) and Craig Stapleton in the off-season, leaving only skipper Roy Asotasi and Ben Ross as specialists in the squad.
Backrower Eddy Pettybourne is expected to be moved to the front row and Jason Clark added to the bench because the club's NSW Cup coach Wayne Lambkin said yesterday that none of his players are ready for the step up to the NRL.
"There's plenty of potential there," Lambkin said. "But unfortunately for John [Lang], none of them are ready [for the NRL] or playing well enough to warrant going there," Lambkin said.
The Norths coach said the injuries would stretch the Rabbitohs.
"It all happens in the one spot and [with the] front row you lose your go forward, you lose your tough men in the middle. It's hard," Lambkin said.
Burgess, 22, had scans on his left ankle yesterday to determine whether he requires surgery that will rule him out for four months.
Cronulla fullback Nathan Gardner is confident he will miss only this week's clash against Souths after injuring his left ankle in the loss to North Queensland.
"It won't be six weeks like some people have said," said Gardner, who is expected to have scans tomorrow.
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sp...ove-to-front-row/story-e6frexnr-1226044662471