Zac Hosking is hoping to avoid surgery with the Canberra Raiders second-rower to undergo rehabilitation on his shoulder for the next two weeks before reassessing.
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Hosking dislocated his left shoulder in the Raiders' 21-20 victory over the Gold Coast Titans on Sunday night.
The 27-year-old met with a specialist on Wednesday, with a decision made to try to get him back on the park without needing to go under the knife.
He'll then be reassessed in two weeks to see if the rehab's working or if he'll need to have surgery after all.
The Raiders previously said if he avoided surgery then he would be back within six to eight weeks.
That could see him return as early as their round 12 clash against the Sydney Roosters at Canberra Stadium on May 25.
If he does require surgery then he'll obviously need a longer recovery.
Physiotherapist Brien Seeney, more commonly known as the NRL Physio on social media, said surgery normally meant at least three months on the sidelines.
That pointed towards an August return at the earliest.
Ata Mariota was named to replace him in the second row for their clash against the Broncos at Lang Park on Saturday.
"Textbook shoulder dislocation mechanism," Seeney posted.
"General recovery guide: - minimal structural damage & joint stable: rehab for 3-6 weeks - significant damage/joint unstable & immediate reconstruction surgery required: 3+ months."
NRL ROUND SEVEN
Saturday: Canberra Raiders v Brisbane Broncos at Lang Park, 7.35pm.
Raiders squad: 1. Chevy Stewart, 2. James Schiller, 3. Matt Timoko, 4. Sebastian Kris, 5. Xavier Savage, 6. Ethan Strange, 7. Jamal Fogarty, 8. Josh Papali'i, 9. Danny Levi, 10. Joe Tapine (c), 11. Hudson Young, 12. Ata Mariota, 13. Morgan Smithies. Interchange: 14. Tom Starling, 15. Simi Sasagi, 16. Trey Mooney, 17. Pasami Saulo. Reserves: 18. Kaeo Weekes, 19. Emre Guler, 20. Zac Woolford, 21. Nick Cotric, 22. Peter Hola.
Broncos squad: 1. Reece Walsh, 2. Corey Oates, 3. Kotoni Staggs, 4. Selwyn Cobbo, 5. Jesse Arthars, 6. Ezra Mam, 7. Jock Madden, 8. Corey Jensen, 9. Billy Walters, 10. Fletcher Baker, 11. Jaiyden Hunt, 12. Jordan Riki, 13. Patrick Carrigan. Interchange: 14. Tyson Smoothy, 15. Xavier Willison, 16. Kobe Hetherington, 17. Tristan Sailor. Reserves: 18. Martin Taupau, 19. Benjamin Te Kura, 20. Jordan Pereira, 21. Blake Mozer, 22. Josiah Karapani.