South Sydney face an anxious wait with star forward Sam Burgess to see a specialist this week after reinjuring a shoulder in Friday night's National Rugby League loss to the Sydney Roosters.
Burgess left the Sydney Football Stadium late in the first half of the 40-29 defeat before having an
MRI scan on the left shoulder he had surgery on in November.
The Rabbitohs will be desperately hoping the big Englishman can avoid another operation after a night of carnage which will leave the club's highly rated pack seriously depleted for the second straight year.
Coach John Lang was hopeful on Friday night that Burgess' injury was "not super bad".
But another bout of surgery could have the backrower sidelined for three months.
Luckless prop Scott Geddes is gone for the season after it was confirmed he ruptured his Achilles tendon.
The injury-plagued 30-year-old, who has spent more than half of his decade long career in the stands, lasted just seven minutes of 2011 when he came off the Rabbitohs bench.
Lock Ben Lowe's broken foot is still to be confirmed but he is likely to miss up to two months.
He suffered a similar injury in 2010.
Souths, who still have Michael Crocker and Jason Clark out of action, suffered a similar spate of injuries to their pack in the latter part of last season.
It was a night of high drama for the Rabbitohs, who almost managed an incredible comeback victory with just one fit man on the bench.
Down 22-6 at halftime, a no-holds-barred spray from the usually mild mannered Lang galvanised the side, with halfback Chris Sandow bringing fans to their feet with a runaway try and a field goal for a brief 29-28 lead.
"We came into the sheds and got a bit of a rev-up but we went out there and tried to do our best in the second half," Sandow said.
"(Lang) said we've just got to go out there and dig in for each other.
"All the boys just looked at each other and said, 'Let's do it'.
"Unfortunately we didn't come back with the two points."
Souths' halves have been highlighted as a possible weakness, but Sandow said they had no point to prove.
"It's the NRL, it's a pretty tough competition so we've just got to keep working hard at our game at training and take it on the field each weekend," he said.
"I felt really confident so hopefully I'll take that into next week's Bulldogs game."
- AAP
Sam Burgess of the Rabbitohs grimaces after being injured against the Sydney Roosters. Photo / Getty Images
South Sydney face an anxious wait with star forward Sam Burgess to see a specialist this week after reinjuring a shoulder in Friday night's National Rugby League loss to the Sydney Roosters.
Burgess left the Sydney Football Stadium late in the first half of the 40-29 defeat before having an
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