Stewart laughs off Manly training mishap

September 11, 2007 - 7:06PM

Manly fullback Brett Stewart had no option but to laugh.

When else but the NRL finals would a simple training mishap force the media to break stride into a jog, or at the very least a quick shuffle?

Stewart sent a minor scare through the Sea Eagles camp during training at Narrabeen on Tuesday after he left the paddock cradling his right thumb.

Had the Sea Eagles' most devastating attacking player broken his thumb? Is he out of the finals?

Half an hour later Stewart emerged from the doctor's office with his hand strapped.

Imagine his surprise when several television cameras and half a dozen reporters chased him through a carpark to bombard him with questions about his injury.

Stewart, the practical joke loving 22-year-old, couldn't help but laugh.

As it turns out, he had only bruised the appendage after it became caught in the training singlet of teammate Travis Burns.

"It's only jarred, I don't know what all the fuss is about," said Stewart.

"Burnsy just got it caught on his shirt on the way past, nothing serious.

"It was just my knuckle was pretty tender so I went in and iced it and the physio strapped it up.

"I'll be back training tomorrow ... I could play tomorrow if I had to."

Welcome to Manly, the NRL side that lets nothing faze them in 2007.

Even coach Des Hasler wasn't concerned about his star fullback's injury when quizzed by the media after training.

"I think you've got them mixed up, Glenn Stewart is the one injured," he said, referring to the torn ankle ligaments of Brett's brother.

Did Des even notice?

"Oh yeah, his thumb is fine," he later added.

There's little doubt though Hasler and the rest of the Sea Eagles are enjoying a week off from the tension of finals football.

Several stars skipped Tuesday's session - both Stewarts, Chris Hicks, Matt Orford, Brent Kite and Glenn Hall - but all should be available for selection in next week's preliminary final.

Kite ran laps and basic drills freely with fellow prop Hall on Tuesday, proving his adductor injury will not burden him next week, while Orford rested after his heavy knock against Souths.

Hasler admits the ankle injuries sustained by winger Hicks and second-rower Glenn Stewart are his only real concerns for the grand final qualifier.

"They're probably the two major concerns, Chris Hicks and Glenn Stewart but both have been cleared of any structural damage as far as breaks," he said.

"Now they've got two weeks to work hard and I'm fairly confident in the work our rehab does and they're every chance of playing.

"No doubt we'll be working overtime for them to take the field in a fortnight's time."

© 2007 AAP