Sea Eagles second-rower Joel Thompson has suffered a graphic laceration to his tongue after Manly's narrow loss to the Knights.
Thompson was unable to help his side over the line as a 72nd minute Enari Tuala try sealed the 26-24 victory for Newcastle to keep them inside the top eight.
However, no one can deny Thompson's effort after images surfaced of the 31-year-old's bloodied tongue after the match, with his Sea Eagles teammate Curtis Sironen posted the photo on Instagram.
Warning: Graphic content
GRAPHIC WARNING: don’t see this one every day. Joel Thompson with a nasty tongue injury. Thankfully doubt it costs him time on the sideline 👅 pic.twitter.com/VrmRPevK52
— NRL PHYSIO (@nrlphysio) August 16, 2020
Just save my teeth, that’s all I care about haha🤦🏽♂️ https://t.co/E178HYZrtk
— Joel Thompson (@joel_thompson12) August 16, 2020
Thompson has had a horror luck with injuries over the past 12 months, hospitalised during the off-season after a nasy fall whilst at a party.
He is set to link up with Super League club St Helens at the end of the season.
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The injury comes at a nightmare time for the club, with coach Des Hasler revealing that fullback Brendan Elliot had suffered an ACL injury, with first-choice fullback Tom Trbojevic still a fortnight away.
“Brendan Elliot looks like he’s done an ACL,” Hasler said post-match.
“(Tafaua) needed a rest, he’s had time to recover so he’ll be back on deck next week.
“Tom’s still at least two weeks away."