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WESTS Tigers centre Chris Lawrence is expected to play again this season, but he may be forced to wait up to eight weeks to find out when he can return.
Lawrence, who spent last night at Campbelltown Hospital, in southwest Sydney, had his dislocated right hip put back into place, but the injury has ruled him out of contention for the May Test against New Zealand and the State of Origin series.
Of more concern is when he will return for the Tigers. With winger Lote Tuqiri sidelined for two months with a broken right forearm, the Tigers must rebuild the left side of their attack.
Tigers doctor Donald Kuah said Lawrence would make a full recovery, but it was too early to know when he would be able to play again. He said medical staff needed to guard against avascular necrosis, a disease that causes the death of cells due to interrupted blood flow. It can take eight weeks to show up. "The blood supply gets compromised," Kuah said. "It's fairly uncommon. We'll know more over time."
Asked if Lawrence would be back this season, the doctor said: "I would expect him to play again this year."
That wasn't the only good news for Lawrence. Despite the severity of the injury, former Western Suburbs, Balmain and Australia winger Ross Conlon predicted he would make a full recovery. Conlon suffered a similar injury at the end of the 1983 season and returned midway through 1984.
Conlon, who texted Lawrence yesterday, had flashbacks when he watched a replay of the game. "I was 24 when I did mine," he said. "I can remember getting the ambulance to hospital."
Wests Tigers doctor Donald Kuah is hopeful Chris Lawrence will be back this season - but admitted the boom centre's hip injury was serious enough to possibly end his career.
Chris Lawrence dislocated his right hip on Saturday night against the Raiders, and it was not until hours later that doctors at Campbelltown Hospital were able to put his hip back into place.
The 22-year-old will undergo scans today, as will Wests Tigers winger Lote Tuqiri with a broken arm, but Kuah doubted Lawrence's injury would be season-ending.
Kuah, however, said his major concern was the possible onset of avascular necrosis, which in an extreme case can affect blood supply to the hip area and all but end a professional sporting career."That's the worst-case scenario, but the majority of these injuries are not career-ending," Kuah said.
"I doubt he's gone for the season. Three months is a reasonable time frame. He'll definitely be out for six weeks because we won't know anything until then because an avascular necrosis complication doesn't show itself until such time."
Lawrence only last week signed a new five-year deal with the Tigers, crossed for a try against Canberra and looked in red-hot form down the left side with Tuqiri and five-eighth Benji Marshall in the Tigers' 34-24 triumph over Canberra.
Tuqiri left the field in the 50th minute after breaking his arm and once Lawrence departed in the 75th minute the Raiders raced in three late tries to make the scoreboard more respectable.
Coach Tim Sheens said he would wait to check on the pair's progress today before he started to ponder their replacements for next week's match against the Roosters at the SFS.
Sheens said that during his lengthy career he had never come across a player who had dislocated his hip, but was relieved when told the hip socket was not fractured.
[Source](http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/sport/tigers-star-faces-eight-week-wait/story-e6frg7mf-1226029051064) and [Source](http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/horrific-injury-threatens-chris-lawrences-career/story-e6frfgbo-1226029033607)
Lawrence, who spent last night at Campbelltown Hospital, in southwest Sydney, had his dislocated right hip put back into place, but the injury has ruled him out of contention for the May Test against New Zealand and the State of Origin series.
Of more concern is when he will return for the Tigers. With winger Lote Tuqiri sidelined for two months with a broken right forearm, the Tigers must rebuild the left side of their attack.
Tigers doctor Donald Kuah said Lawrence would make a full recovery, but it was too early to know when he would be able to play again. He said medical staff needed to guard against avascular necrosis, a disease that causes the death of cells due to interrupted blood flow. It can take eight weeks to show up. "The blood supply gets compromised," Kuah said. "It's fairly uncommon. We'll know more over time."
Asked if Lawrence would be back this season, the doctor said: "I would expect him to play again this year."
That wasn't the only good news for Lawrence. Despite the severity of the injury, former Western Suburbs, Balmain and Australia winger Ross Conlon predicted he would make a full recovery. Conlon suffered a similar injury at the end of the 1983 season and returned midway through 1984.
Conlon, who texted Lawrence yesterday, had flashbacks when he watched a replay of the game. "I was 24 when I did mine," he said. "I can remember getting the ambulance to hospital."
Wests Tigers doctor Donald Kuah is hopeful Chris Lawrence will be back this season - but admitted the boom centre's hip injury was serious enough to possibly end his career.
Chris Lawrence dislocated his right hip on Saturday night against the Raiders, and it was not until hours later that doctors at Campbelltown Hospital were able to put his hip back into place.
The 22-year-old will undergo scans today, as will Wests Tigers winger Lote Tuqiri with a broken arm, but Kuah doubted Lawrence's injury would be season-ending.
Kuah, however, said his major concern was the possible onset of avascular necrosis, which in an extreme case can affect blood supply to the hip area and all but end a professional sporting career."That's the worst-case scenario, but the majority of these injuries are not career-ending," Kuah said.
"I doubt he's gone for the season. Three months is a reasonable time frame. He'll definitely be out for six weeks because we won't know anything until then because an avascular necrosis complication doesn't show itself until such time."
Lawrence only last week signed a new five-year deal with the Tigers, crossed for a try against Canberra and looked in red-hot form down the left side with Tuqiri and five-eighth Benji Marshall in the Tigers' 34-24 triumph over Canberra.
Tuqiri left the field in the 50th minute after breaking his arm and once Lawrence departed in the 75th minute the Raiders raced in three late tries to make the scoreboard more respectable.
Coach Tim Sheens said he would wait to check on the pair's progress today before he started to ponder their replacements for next week's match against the Roosters at the SFS.
Sheens said that during his lengthy career he had never come across a player who had dislocated his hip, but was relieved when told the hip socket was not fractured.
[Source](http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/sport/tigers-star-faces-eight-week-wait/story-e6frg7mf-1226029051064) and [Source](http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/horrific-injury-threatens-chris-lawrences-career/story-e6frfgbo-1226029033607)
