Melbourne centre Justin O’Neill’s troublesome groin will be put to the test stopping Gold Coast giant Jamal Idris on Friday night when the NRL teams clash at AAMI Park.
O’Neill didn’t finish the Storm’s big win over Penrith last round that broke their five-game losing streak, as his groin – which kept him sidelined for two weeks – started to play up.
That was after he’d managed two tries in the 46-6 romp, including one after taking a screamer from a Cooper Cronk bomb.
But the 21-year-old, who has re-signed for a further two seasons in Melbourne, says it’s just a matter of managing the injury until season’s end.
He knows lining up against 120kg hitman Idris will give it a solid workout.
“He’s massive and a very dangerous player,” O’Neill said.
“If I do play on the left again, I’ll mark up against him.”
The Titans had a training run in wet and windy conditions in Melbourne on Thursday, with the temperature barely in double figures.
A Gold Coast spokesman said Greg Bird, who was included on an extended bench after missing their narrow loss to Souths with a hamstring injury, had trained well and was set to take his place in the line-up.
His inclusion means the ninth-placed Titans will have their representative back-row of Bird, Nate Myles and Ashley Harrison on the field together for the first time since round 13.
O’Neill said it was important for his side to back up their strong performance against the Panthers.
“The Titans are a tough team,” he said.
“They’re fighting for a spot in the finals so we’ll have to bring our A-game.”
The Storm are also fighting for starting jerseys with O’Neill last round taking the place of dumped State of Origin centre Dane Nielsen and keeping him down in NSW Cup.
“It just goes to show that no one’s position in the side is safe,” O’Neill said.
“He’ll bounce back.”