Brisbane have suffered a major blow in the quest to defend their NRL premiership title with workhorse Pat Carrigan ruled out of action until around mid-July.
The Broncos confirmed the Queensland and Australia forward had surgery to repair an ankle syndesmosis injury suffered in their 30-26 loss to St George Illawarra on Sunday and is expected to be sidelined for approximately six weeks.
During that period, Brisbane have two byes in the NRL and the 28-year-old is expected to miss matches against Gold Coast, South Sydney, the Sydney Roosters and Cronulla, plus the remainder of the State of Origin series.
Brisbane teammate Reece Walsh meantime, has lifted the lid on the tough conversations held in the Broncos' inner sanctum and praised Payne Haas for his forthright bake of the players.
