Canberra NRL legend Jarrod Croker has suffered a cruel injury blow, dislocating his shoulder at home less than three weeks after hurting the same one against Canterbury.
Croker was named at centre for the Raiders' clash with Parramatta but will now miss Sunday's contest and instead head for scans to determine the extent of his injury.
He'd been out of NRL action since his season debut against the Bulldogs in round nine, where he hurt his shoulder diving to deny a late try in a tense win.
Croker was at home on Tuesday night when he dislocated the same shoulder.
The 31-year-old co-captain has played 292 NRL games but injuries are stalling his progress toward becoming the 44th member of the league's 300 club.
Raider forward Adam Elliott admitted there was a crushing feeling among the playing group when informed of the injury.
"It was definitely sad news this morning when I found out, I was so excited just to get in here and see him," he told reporters.
"All the boys have been keeping tabs on how close he was to coming back, I know how excited he was.
"He's not just such a good bloke but he's such a good player too.
"We don't know the severity of it, but we will be getting around him and supporting him and hoping that he's out there with us."
Seb Kris had been named on the bench and will likely come into the starting lineup.
Australian Associated Press
