Viewers were left squirming in their seats at the sight of Manly cult hero Jake Trbojevic leaving the field after another hit to the head during the Sea Eagles’ win on Friday night.
Manly piled more pressure on Dragons coach Shane Flanagan with a gritty 28-18 win in Wollongong — but Trbojevic was forced to watch the second half from the bench.
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Some boos could be heard in sections of the stadium after the home side suffered its 10th consecutive defeat.
Manly have their own serious issues to deal with.
Already managing a scary track record of head knocks in recent years, the sight of Trbojevic being injured in the first half was the last thing fans wanted to see.
The Sea Eagles faithful took a collective breath as Trbojevic was brought from the field to undergo a head injury assessment (HIA) test.
The game was pulled up by the referee as a Manly trainer attended to Trbojevic behind play after the former NSW State of Origin forward took contact to his face when making a tackle on the try line.
The veteran forward passed his HIA but wasn’t allowed to return to the game after half time due to a closed eye that required stitches.
Trbojevic has on several times been publicly advised to hang up the boots because of his record of head injuries.
Widely regarded as one of the nicest players in the competition, Trbojevic suffered three concussions last year.
He has since started wearing specialty headgear in a bid to minimise the impacts of contact.
The former Kangaroos second-rower has re-signed for 2027 but has until round 10 to activate the new deal and wants to see how his body holds up before he commits.
“I just want to see how I go,” Trbojevic said last month.
“Last year was a bit disappointing with how it all went. Obviously just getting knocked out every second week was disappointing.
“I want it to work for both parties. I was always going to play this year, so it doesn’t change anything.”
Manly, meanwhile, are now 2-0 in a perfect start for interim coach Kieran Foran following Anthony Seibold’s sacking.
If the wins continue it won’t take long for the club to hand Foran a long-term contract.
