UPDATED: Sharks star Nicho Hynes was left "dusty" and succumbed to a calf injury against the Panthers, just 24 hours out from the NSW Blues squad being announced.
In the midst of a first-half onslaught from Penrith, the halfback copped an ugly knee to the head and was spotted in back play feeling the effects.
Hynes was then forced off the field for a head injury assessment by the independent doctor and was deemed to be showing category two concussion symptoms.
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"That may explain the wobbles," Dan Ginnane said on Fox League commentary.
Michael Ennis admitted there was some concern for Hynes as he left the field.
"He gets the accidental knee of Isaah Yeo on the way down," Ennis said.
"He looked to be a little dusty getting to his feet and the medical staff wasted no time getting the No.7 off the field."
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After the break, it was revealed Hynes had passed his HIA, but his nagging calf injury ruled him out for the remainder of the clash against the reigning premiers.
Penrith took an astonishing 28-0 lead into the half-time break against Cronulla and continued it after half-time to produce an emphatic 42-0 victory away from home.
The major storyline however will be Hynes, who was on the cusp of playing in the halves for NSW but suffered an untimely setback.
https://twitter.com/nrlphysio/status/1794286990910992514?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Michael Maguire – who will coach his first series at Origin level – was in the stands at Pointsbet Stadium and now has a massive decision to make for the June 5 opener.
Hynes had been battling with the calf injury for a number of weeks and missed Cronulla's round 10 win over the Storm, before a "risky" return against the Roosters.
"He's not too bad," head coach Craig Fitzgibbon said.
"Probably with the 15-minute time off [for HIA], it cooled down and tightened up.
"Even if he got through, he would still need to be modified. I'm not certain of the extent, it was more to do with just cooling down.
"It happened a couple of weeks ago – he's done well to get through to get through last week and he was getting through tonight. It's still there, I don't know the severity of it – but it's not completely gone or anything like that."
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