NRL: Luck out for up to eight weeks

Micheal Luck walks off injured. Photo / Getty Images

Loose forward Micheal Luck is expected to be sidelined for up to eight weeks after partially dislocating the patella in his left knee during the New Zealand Warriors' 22-26 loss to Wests Tigers in yesterday's 14th-round NRL clash at Mount Smart Stadium.

The 29-year-old veteran was forced off the field after just 28 minutes of his 207th NRL match but team doctor John Mayhew said results of a scan today were encouraging.

"The good news is there's no sign of serious ligament damage on the MRI scan and there's no apparent need for surgery," he said.

Luck was relieved about the diagnosis.

"Thankfully it's not a worst-case scenario and I now have the chance of getting into rehab programme and aiming to be back playing soon," he said.

"I didn't know what to expect. I've never had a serious knee injury before so it's a relief the news is better than it could have been."

The setback denies Luck the chance of returning to Townsville to play against his old North Queensland club this weekend. He made 76 appearances for the Cowboys before joining the Warriors for the 2006 season.

Last year he joined the club's 100-game club, yesterday's match being his 131st for the Warriors.

- Herald online