Asiata to play hurt for shot at NRL title

COWBOYS prop John Asiata will produce one of the bravest grand final acts in almost 50 years when he plays in this week’s NRL decider with a fresh break to his battered hand.

Asiata yesterday revealed he sustained a second break to his left hand in the Cowboys’ preliminary final defeat of the Roosters – just a fortnight after suffering an initial fracture against the Sharks.

Souths legend John Sattler famously played 77 minutes of the 1970 grand final with a broken jaw, while Maroons warhorse Shane Webcke carried a fractured arm into Brisbane’s 2000 decider against the Roosters.

While Asiata’s courage is not in Sattler’s league, he will be forced to play through the pain barrier against a monster Melbourne pack led by Jesse Bromwich and Jordan McLean.

The 24-year-old played off the bench in North Queensland’s epic 2015 premiership victory and may require a needle to help him withstand a Storm barrage this Sunday night at ANZ Stadium.

“I actually broke my hand again on the weekend against the Roosters,” he said.

“It wasn’t clicking as much last week but then after the (Roosters) game I could feel it moving around more, so after this week I will be going under the knife and having an operation. There’s no other way to say it, it’s definitely broken.

“My knuckle is a bit shortened and my middle finger is displaced as well so if I don’t strap it, my fingers go on top of each other.

“But I’ve made a decision that I can play through it, I figured there was only three games (left) after the Sharks game so it’s the best decision to play on.”

Asiata’s toughness underscores the bravery of a Cowboys side that has chief enforcer Matt Scott, on the comeback trail from a knee reconstruction, waiting in the wings if there is an eleventh- hour withdrawal.