Key injuries hit Cairns

Wednesday, January 17, 2024

The Cairns Taipans have been hit by the injury curse ahead of Round 16.

The Cairns Taipans sit just outside the top six, and a wave of injuries ahead of an important double-header this week has caused a setback for the squad.

Sam Waardenburg (concussion) and Jonah Antonio (calf) were already ruled out last week, with Waardenburg still recovering and Antonio out for the season.

They're now joined on the sideline by Next Star Bobi Klintman, who has a flu that has swept through the club.

Waardenburg suffered a hit from Tasmania JackJumpers’ Marcus Lee in the Taipans’ Round 14 loss, while Antonio tore his right calf in training.

Head coach Adam Forde was disappointed with the injury news, but remains positive in the rest of his playing group to perform.

“It’s not something we want to rush,” Forde said on Waardenburg’s return.

“Jonah, he has a tear in his calf which will rule him out for quite some time.

“Disappointed for both guys, and for me – both are important in the rotation of our lineup.

“But it just means obviously, the next man up mentality, and the guys have already shown their willing to fill that void.

“Bobi is unlikely for this game (Thursday night), there’s a flu going through everyone and it’s hit me now.”

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Sam Waardenburg will be unavailable tomorrow due to concussion protocols, while Jonah Antonio sustained a calf injury during the week.<br><br>? Injury update brought to you by <a href="https://twitter.com/CQU?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CQU</a> Exercise & Sports Science.<a href="https://t.co/wzCLjjRAy3">https://t.co/wzCLjjRAy3</a></p>— Cairns Taipans (@CairnsTaipans) <a href="https://twitter.com/CairnsTaipans/status/1745714294648680710?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 12, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

The Taipans hold a 10-12 record after a rollercoaster season of highs and lows.

The Taipans play the Illawarra Hawks on Thursday night at 7:30pm AEDT. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN via Kayo.