Recovering NRL star Corey Oates may have made light of his sickening head knock but Brisbane teammate Jordan Kahu admits they face a tough call over the winger’s fitness after his “scary” collision.
Oates emerged all smiles at training on Monday wearing head gear, after his horror clash with teammate Anthony Milford in last week’s 13-6 NRL semi-final win over Penrith ensured he left the field dazed in a medicab.
Oates quickly ditched the sight gag to undergo light duties as he was monitored ahead of Friday night’s preliminary final in Melbourne.
Fellow forwards Sam Thaiday and Jai Arrow will also be eased through the week after also suffering head knocks against the Panthers.
Veteran playmaker Benji Marshall joked the early indications weren’t good for Oates on Monday.
“He is walking around in circles with head gear on so it is probably not a good sign,” Marshall laughed.
“But I think he is playing.
“The collision looked a lot worse judging by the way he is feeling at the moment.
“He looks a lot better today than he did before.
“Hopefully he is on track to play because he is a big asset for us.”
But Brisbane winger Jordan Kahu believed Oates was no guarantee to play against the Storm after witnessing the violent collision.
“It was scary,” he said.
“I went over and had a look at him snoring away on the ground.
“It was pretty upsetting seeing him going off on a stretcher.”
Kahu said coach Wayne Bennett faced a “tough situation” on whether Oates should play.
“He seemed alright after the game and I am sure he will do everything this week to get up for the game,” he said.
“But it’s a tough situation.
“Any other part of the body you can try and push but it’s pretty serious (head knocks) – you don’t want to be stuffing around with those kind of things.”
Brisbane will need Oates’ firepower to pull off an upset against the runaway favourites and book their second grand final in three years.
Oates scored his eighth try in six finals games before his match ended abruptly against the Panthers at Suncorp Stadium.
