Injured Warriors utility Ben Henry has received the better than expected news that he is likely to be sidelined for several weeks rather than the rest of the season.

In his first NRL match after recovering from knee surgery, Henry limped off late in the 31-12 defeat to St George Illawarra in Auckland.

Initial fears were that the second rower and centre had re-torn the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee.

However, club doctor Simon Mayhew says scans on Monday showed no apparent ligament damage.

“The outlook is far more promising than we had anticipated,” he said.

“It appears Ben has a cartilage tear which would put him out for a period of weeks rather than the season.”

Mayhew said Henry would be further assessed by orthopaedic surgeon Stu Walsh later in the week to confirm the full extent of the injury.

Henry made seven NRL appearances last year before injuring the knee in training in May.

He returned to action two weekends ago in the Warriors’ New South Wales Cup side and on Saturday was used off the bench against the Dragons.

Meanwhile, utility Thomas Leuluai, who is recovering from a groin injury, is on course to make his first appearance of the season in the Warriors’ fourth-round fixture against Wests Tigers in Wellington on March 29.

In judiciary news, skipper Simon Mannering, who was put on report for a high tackle on Dragons winger and Kiwis teammate Jason Nightingale, has not been charged by the NRL match review committee.