Campbell Graham can be forgiven for thinking about Cronulla when he receives a painkilling injection to the sternum before every NRL game, and then again at half-time.
Graham will run out for South Sydney in Perth on Saturday night against the Sharks, the club he suffered the painful injury against in round one.
The Souths centre played through the pain for the first three months of the season before a fresh blow against Parramatta on the eve of Origin I forced him to take an enforced timeout.
For all the excitement about Latrell Mitchell and what he might do at Optus Stadium, spare a thought for Graham who will be posted out at right centre, hoping he does not receive a fresh blow to the sternum.
Souths medical staff cannot recall seeing a worse sternum injury. Graham has even resorted to wearing a sternum guard.
Surgery at the end of the season is an option, but three months of rest will be the best way for Graham to make a full recovery.
Campbell Graham takes two painkilling injections for every game. Credit: Getty Images
“I did it back in round one, I don’t remember the actual incident, I just remember pulling up shit,” Graham told this masthead.
“It wasn’t until that Origin period when it caused me the most grief. I get an injection before each game, then another one at half-time.
“We’ll worry about whether to get surgery at the end of the year. It’s a possibility. It’s not ideal, but as long as I can still do my job, I don’t mind [playing in pain].”
Souths physio Eddie Farah said he had seen improvement in Graham since he was given a short break last month, and was back completing most field and contact sessions during the week at training.
Farah said scans revealed Graham had a chip fragment floating around one of the sternum joints.
“He’ll get a local anaesthetic. Most games he’s OK, but every now and then he’ll get a hit where he still feels it and it will rock him,” Farah said.
“He got up a bit ginger after one tackle against the Tigers [last Friday], but then he’s OK.
“He’s much better than he was. From round 12 to round 16 around that Origin period, he was battling, he then had a month off, and after our bye he’s been much better.
“He basically needs rest. He needs three to six months for it to settle down. He’ll get a good break over the off-season. Even if he doesn’t do contact until January or even February, he’ll get a good period of time off.
“Speak to any player who has had a rib or sternum fracture, they’ll still get up some mornings and be sore.”
Graham, who recently extended his time at Souths until the end of 2027, said the return of Mitchell and the Origin contingent – including Damien Cook, Cameron Murray, Cody Walker – and his right-edge back-rower Keaon Koloamatangi, meant the Redfern club had a nice sense of timing heading into the NRL finals.
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