The Roosters’ injury curse struck again before a ball was kicked in the first round with rising young striker Egan Butcher set to miss the first month of the season.
Butcher, who was certain of being chosen in the Roosters’ opener squad against Newcastle, has a stress fracture in his foot following a training accident.
No team has been hit harder by injury in 2021 than the Roosters and this latest incident is a cruel blow ahead of the first round.
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The injury forced Butcher to pull out of the Roosters’ two trial games and he was seen wearing a moon boot in Sydney’s eastern suburbs.
A 21-year-old local junior, Butcher, made his debut mid-season last year when the Roosters were decimated and rose to the occasion, playing through to the semi-finals and looking up to snuff.
“It’s a real blow,” a Roosters insider told Wide World of Sports.
“He trained very well but wore a moon boot and limited himself to light duties.”
His injury may well give his older brother Nat the chance to enter Trent Robinson’s 17-man squad.
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