Australia winger Josh Mansour is out of the Four Nations after suffering a torn anterior cruciate ligament.
The Penrith wideman had locked in one of the wing spots for Saturday’s Four Nations line-up to face New Zealand, but is set to return to Sydney after his worst fears were confirmed by a MRI scan.
Mansour scored twice and ran for a game-high 247 metres in the 54-12 win and was singled out for praise by coach Mal Meninga, who all but admitted he’d line up against the Kiwis in Coventry.
The 26-year-old fell to the ground during the latter stages of the team’s final training session at the St George’s Park complex in Staffordshire, in central England, and was taken from the field.
Mansour cried out in pain and he was helped from the field after an innocuous-looking collision with Josh Dugan towards the end of a small-sided game between squad members which was immediately stopped.
The setback is a crushing blow for Mansour, who suffered a long-term medial ligament injury two years ago, and was planning to go on honeymoon in Europe at the conclusion of the tour following his recent wedding.
Tournament rules do allow the option of adding a replacement player, but there is no immediate plans to supplement the 24-man squad.
The Kangaroos will leave Burton, which is the state of the art training base of the English football team, on Thursday and head to Birmingham.
A win for either side will earn a spot in the final at Anfield on November 20.
Meninga and his staff will now have to rethink their line-up, which will almost certainly see the return of Darius Boyd, Matt Scott, Greg Inglis and Johnathan Thurston, who were rested last Friday.
Sydney Roosters outside back Blake Ferguson was going to lose out to Mansour and Valentine Holmes, who sat out the Scotland match and will now keep his place in the team.
There has also been speculation Cooper Cronk may be rested to preserve him for the England fixture at London’s Olympic Stadium on November 12.
If the Melbourne five-eighth is left out, James Maloney would be in line to win his second cap after debuting against the Scots.
Meninga will name an extended 19-man squad on Thursday (Friday AEDT).
