'Grave doubt': Payne Haas cops fresh setback as Broncos face brutal double blow
Brisbane will have until an hour before the game kicks off at 8pm on Friday night to make a final call on the 25-year-old wrecking ball. But if Haas is a late scratching for the showdown against the Bunnies, it would be a massive blow to the sixth-placed Broncos' hopes of finishing the regular season inside the top-four.
Even if the NSW Origin star is deemed well enough to play, he's set to go into the clash against Wayne Bennett's Rabbitohs underdone. The powerhouse prop reportedly started feeling unwell during the Broncos captain's run at Red Hill on Thursday morning. But coach Michael Maguire will understandably give him until the 11th hour to prove his fitness for Friday night's game.
Payne Haas in significant doubt for the Broncos in Round 22 due to illness (via @badel_cmail).Has been kept in the squad post 24 hour cuts but reportedly a high chance of being ruled out for final team lists - Broncos going to give him up til then to prove his fitness. pic.twitter.com/fr09D1BCi4
— NRL PHYSIO (@nrlphysio) July 31, 2025
He has an infection. They have until an hour before kick off to make a final call
— Pete Badel (@badel_cmail) July 31, 2025
Haas had already been battling a number of injury niggles, but Brisbane's medical team revealed this week that his workload was being managed and insisted he would keep playing. The NSW prop has been dealing with an ongoing lower back issue that troubled him during the Blues' Origin series defeat. And he was also seen limping at the end of Brisbane's shock loss to Parramatta last week after a knock to the ankle, which fortunately wasn't serious enough to require scans.
But the Broncos' head of football Troy Thomson - who was also the high performance manager for the Kangaroos and the premiership-winning Rabbitohs side in 2014 - explained that it is more beneficial for Haas to continue training and playing with Brisbane. And the club rejected suggestions that it would be more beneficial to rest him.
"If Payne can't play a game of footy of course we are going to give him a rest, but this whole notion that giving him a rest is going to fix him is not how the human body works," Thomson told AAP. "Movement helps recovery. If you don't move, you get sorer.
"We are managing Payne's loads, like we do all of the players on an individual basis to ensure they are fresh enough but also have sufficient fitness, strength, flexibility and range of motion to play week-in and week-out NRL. It is about ensuring they have the right stimulus ... and volume and intensity of load as well."
Brendan Piakura ruled out for Broncos after head knock
The Broncos can ill afford to lose another player from their forward pack - particularly one as influential as Haas - after Piakura was a late scratching for the Rabbitohs game. It's understood the Brisbane edge forward suffered a head knock at training, meaning he will undergo a mandatory 11-day stand down which is also set to rule Piakura out of next Thursday night's blockbuster against premiership favourites, Melbourne.
Veteran back-rower Jack Gosiewski has come into Brisbane's starting side to replace Piakura for the Souths game, with front-row recruit Ben Talty added to the bench. If Haas is ruled out, then either Kobe Hetherington or fellow interchange forward Xavier Willison could be promoted to a starting prop role, with utility forward Tyson Smoothy likely to come into the 17 after being named in Brisbane's extended squad.
Broncos team newsIt's understood Brendan Piakura suffered a head knock at @brisbanebroncos training which is why he was a late scratching for @SSFCRABBITOHS clash.An 11-day stand down would also see him miss @storm next week. pic.twitter.com/5ZZajqRFe5
— Joel Gould (@JoelGould6) July 31, 2025
with AAP
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