NRL: Seymour gets all-clear to face Rabbitohs

Brett Seymour says it is daunting returning to a winning Warriors team. Photo / Getty Images

Brett "Buster" Seymour was a relieved man after undergoing concussion tests yesterday.

The veteran playmaker inherited his nickname from his father during his Broncos days. But, given the amount of time he has spent on the sidelines nursing thumb and leg fractures in his debut Warriors season, there was a decent case brewing for swapping the "r" at the end of his moniker for a "d".

Seymour certainly looked busted when he copped a sickening blow to the head attempting a tackle in his comeback match against the Storm on Sunday. He left the field in a daze, but quickly recovered to return and marshall a fine defence-oriented win.

Yesterday both Seymour and his club breathed a sigh of relief when he was cleared to take on the Rabbitohs on Sunday as part of an unchanged Warriors side.

"I had a few tests done and it all came up pretty sweet," he said. "It was a bit of a funny one how it happened but I am sure they wouldn't have put me back out there had it been a risk."

With back-up Isaac John gone for the season with a knee injury, Seymour's continued good health will be crucial to the Warriors' hopes of making a significant playoff charge.

Signed after a much-publicised sacking by Cronulla and with a history of off-field problems dating back to his first club Brisbane, Seymour has been a revelation off the field for the Warriors, slipping naturally into a leadership role.

Such is his influence that the club moved quickly to take up his option for next season despite having yet to get full value on the field.

While frustrated at being limited to just five appearances, Seymour has largely been pleased with his form. "When I am out there things are going really well. The body hasn't held up as I've wanted but it hasn't been season-ending so I am looking at the bright side. We've got a good young squad and a few of the young guys are really starting to play well."

Returning to a side on a four-match winning run without him had been nerve-racking, he admitted.

"I was sitting down with Lance [Hohaia] and Tatey [Brent Tate] the other day and saying it is a little bit daunting coming back into a team that is doing so well. You just don't want to let anyone down."

A win over the Rabbitohs on Sunday would equal the club's second longest winning streak - a six-match run in the inaugural 1995 season - however Seymour said he believed the fifth-placed Warriors would still be flying well below the radar in Australia.

"When I was playing for Cronulla they always wrote off the Warriors and in Aussie they are still probably not giving us a show," he said.

"That's good with us. We don't read the papers. We'll just keep our feet firmly on the ground. We'll just take each game as it comes and come finals time hopefully we are still in the mix and hopefully we'll still be in some good form."

Meanwhile, plans for Manly and Kiwis centre Steve Matai to travel to New Zealand and inspect the club's facilities have been cancelled. Club officials are still hoping to meet with Matai but no date has been set.

The club is also in negotiations with massive forward Ukuma Ta'ai over a contract extension. The club has an option on the Tongan back rower for next season but the Herald understands Ta'ai, who has scored five tries this season, will be offered a longer term deal.

RABBITOHS

ANZ Stadium, Sunday 4pm (NZT)

Rhys Wesser
Nathan Merritt
Colin Best
Beau Champion
Fetuli Talanoa
John Sutton
Chris Sandow
Sam Burgess
Beau Falloon
Roy Asotasi (c)
Michael Crocker
David Taylor
Ben Lowe

WARRIORS

Lance Hohaia
Kevin Locke
Brent Tate
Jerome Ropati
Manu Vatuvei
James Maloney
Brett Seymour
Jesse Royal
Aaron Heremaia
Russell Packer
S. Mannering (c)
Lewis Brown
Micheal Luck

Rabbitohs: Garret Crossman, Eddy Pettybourne, Dave Tyrrell, Jason Clark

Warriors: Ian Henderson, Ben Matulino, Jeremy Latimore, Ukuma Ta'ai, Jacob Lillyman