NRL 2021

Fifita stayed on his knees after a tackle from Kurt Mann and and Sauaso Sue in the final minute of the first half. He was attended to by a trainer and left the field for a HIA.

The 32-year-old passed the HIA and returned to the field at the start of the second half, however he came off again five minutes later and did not return.

He was treated by medics on the sideline of Moreton Daily Stadium in Redcliffe.

The Sharks confirmed on Sunday night Fifita was taken to hospital after the game.

The announcement on Sunday comes a day after the NSW government put the entire state into lockdown to manage to ongoing Covid outbreak.

The NRL relocated north of the Tweed last month and will now stay there until finals at the earliest.

A decision on venues for the finals series has not yet been made.

Here’s the confirmed draw for the regular season.

ROUND 23

Thursday

Titans v Storm, 7.50pm at Cbus Super Stadium

Friday

Raiders v Sea Eagles, 6pm at Suncorp Stadium

Parker’s head knock and the send-off saw 18th man Moses Suli activated and the new man scored in the corner with his second touch of the ball shortly after then doubled up three minutes later following Marata Niukore’s sin-binning for a professional foul. 

Sea Eagles coach Des Hasler was unsure of Parker's availability for next Friday against the Raiders.

"He's a bit sick, a bit sore. But we'll go through the normal concussion protocols now. It's a short turnaround so at this stage it might be difficult," Hasler said.

"We'll have to see how he pulls up."

It wasn't the only new chapter written in the record books with the rampant Rabbitohs recording 10 straight wins for the first time since the 1989 team coached by George Piggins.

Wayne Bennett’s current crop can now also lay claim to having scored the most points in a season (689 and counting) for the proud foundation club.

And while the typically understated Bennett isn't fussed by statistical achievements, he can sense something special building.

In a chaotic final eight minutes, where the scoreline changed three times, Broncos forward Tom Flegler was ruled to have collected Sitili Tupouniua high by the NRL Bunker after James Tedesco challenged a knock-on decision in the 78th minute.

Roosters centre Adam Keighran brushed aside the club's goal-kicking woes this season to slot the match-winner after the Broncos looked to be home only moments earlier in a crazy passage of play.

In the end the Storm prevailed 26-16 but they had to survive a Jack Wighton-inspired comeback from Canberra before registering their 18th win on the trot.

"Canberra always come and play well against, it's been a big rivalry obviously since Ricky Stuart's been at the club, he and Bellyache [Craig Bellamy] go head to head all the time and they know each other's game really well," Storm five-eighth Cameron Munster told Channel Nine post-match.

"They played well tonight and we needed to play a little bit gritty just to get the win."

In rare circumstances, Penrith opted to have Cleary represent Koroisau on Tuesday night instead of a leading barrister.

While Titans head of performance and culture Mal Meninga unsuccessfully defended David Fifita earlier this season, Cleary became the first coach to act as a lawyer for some time.

Cleary started out by stressing that he meant "no disrespect to the [legal] fraternity" and was assured by judiciary chairman Geoff Bellew that he was entitled to represent his player.

Parramatta’s skipper is off-contract at the end of next season, meaning he’s free to field offers from rival clubs from November 1 if the Eels don’t lock him in on a new deal beforehand.

The 26-year-old is likely at the top of their list of priority re-signings, however according to Fox League’s James Hooper, the negotiation process won’t be as simple as it may seem.

“A couple of years ago when Clint Gutherson was in his last round of contract negotiations for an extension with the Eels it blew up publicly and it got really ugly,” Hooper told NRL 360.

The Storm have put opponents to the sword week after week, scoring 40 or more 11 times in their 17-game win streak but the Sea Eagles pushed them to their limit and it was only a couple of late errors that allowed Melbourne to kick away. 

Centre Justin Olam crossed for a double but all of the Storm’s stars contributed to the win through key interventions whether it be a try, try assist or line break. 

Tom Trbojevic was kept relatively quiet, but still came up with two try assists, while Reuben Garrick crossed twice for a double. 

Burton scored two tries, made three line-breaks, seven tackle breaks and ran a game high 211 metres with the ball as Penrith bounced back from last weekend’s 37-10 loss to Melbourne.

The win ensured Penrith retain second place on for-and-against ahead of South Sydney after the Rabbitohs 40-12 thumping of Parramatta on Friday night and opens up an eight-point buffer between the top three teams and the fourth-placed Eels and Roosters.