Manly centre Clayton Faulalo\u00a0is on track to complete his return from a hamstring injury in Sunday’s showdown with the Eels.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The flyer fell short of an early comeback last week but is set for a timely return with teammate Tolu Koula away on NSW duties.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Faulalo is one of multiple young guns set to get their chance this weekend with Origin plays in their respective camps ahead of Wednesday’s decider at Suncorp Stadium.\u00a0<\/p>\n
See all the late mail, official team news and updates for Round 18 of the 2026 NRL Telstra Premiership competition.<\/p>\n
NRL Late Mail: Round 18
\nPanthers v Rabbitohs, Friday 8.00pm at CommBank Stadium<\/p>\n
Panthers:\u00a0Luke Garner and Scott Sorensen will line up in the back row after Isaiah Papali’i was ruled out with a concussion and with Liam Martin away on NSW duties. Nathan Cleary and Isaah Yeo are also off with the Blues, with Jack Cogger taking over at halfback and Lindsay Smith at lock. Brian To’o will take his place on the wing after missing out on NSW selection. The Panthers have won 13 of their last 16 games against the Rabbitohs.<\/p>\n
Rabbitohs:\u00a0Jack Wighton is on track to return from a broken arm but South Sydney have been dealt a blow with record-breaking try-scorer Alex Johnston struck down due to a calf injury. Wighton’s return at centre will see Tallis Duncan shift to the back-row, with Dayne Jennings replacing Johnston on the wing. Matt Dufty is also back in the six-man bench and could play his first game since Round 12.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Dragons v Wests Tigers, Saturday 5.30pm at St George Venues Jubilee Stadium<\/p>\n
Dragons:\u00a0Centre Moses Suli remains in the reserves as he looks to return from a hip injury suffered two weeks ago. Suli’s return would likely see Tyrell Sloan drop out and Mat Feagai shift back to the wing. It’s been a tough year for the Dragons but they have won three of their last four against the Tigers.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Wests Tigers:\u00a0Jock Madden is on track to return from a concussion and will step into the No.6 jumper after Jarome Luai was ruled out due to delayed concussion symptoms. Alex Twal is also due to return from a knee injury after being a late withdrawal last week, with Alex Seyfarth dropping back to the six-man bench. Heamasi Makasini has moved from the interchange to the starting side after centre Taylan May was ruled out with a shoulder injury.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Broncos v Sharks, Saturday 7.35pm at Suncorp Stadium<\/p>\n
Broncos:\u00a0Xavier Willison remains a chance of taking his place in the team despite suffering a head knock last week, with the Broncos seeking an exemption from the NRL.\u00a0Deine Mariner is looking to play his first game since suffering a gruesome quad injury in Round 9 and is set to line up on the wing in a new-look backline. The return of Gehamat Shibasaki from a knee injury will see Grant Anderson shift to the wing, while Hayze Perham starts at fullback with Reece Walsh on Origin duties.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sharks:\u00a0Jayden Berrell has been named at hooker but could switch with bench utility Hohepa Puru on gameday, as has been the case in the past when Blayke Brailey was unavailable. Addin Fonua-Blake joins Brailey in the Blues team, with Tom Hazelton replacing the prop in the starting side. Billy Burns will start in the back row with Briton Nikora in the Maroons side.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Eels v Sea Eagles, Sunday 2.00pm at CommBank Stadium<\/p>\n
Eels:\u00a0Halfback Jonah Pezet is on track for his first NRL game since Round 5 after making a successful return from a hamstring injury in NSW Cup last week. The youngster replaces NSW playmaker Mitchell Moses. Tallyn Da Silva has again been named at hooker but could trade places with bench utility Harrison Edwards as has been the case on multiple occasions this season. The Eels have won six from seven against the Sea Eagles at CommBank Stadium.<\/p>\n
Sea Eagles:\u00a0Clayton Faulalo is on track to return from a hamstring injury suffered in Round 14 after falling short of an early comeback last weekend. The centre replaces Tolu Koula, who is in the NSW squad, while fellow centre Reuben Garrick is also set to return from a concussion. NSW Cup hooker Zaidas Muagututia could be in line for an NRL debut as he joins the extended bench. Corey Waddell is set to start in the back-row with Haumole Olakau’atu also in the Blues team. Prop Kobe Hetherington is on track to return from a concussion.<\/p>\n
Knights v Dolphins, Sunday 4.05pm at McDonald Jones Stadium<\/p>\n
Knights:\u00a0Kalyn Ponga and Bradman Best’s absence has triggered a familiar reshuffle for the Knights. Fletcher Sharpe moves to fullback, Sandon Smith comes into the halves and Fletcher Hunt comes into the centres. The Knights have won their last five games against the Dolphins.<\/p>\n
Dolphins:\u00a0Prop Tom Gilbert is set to return after missing the Warriors game due to a throat injury and Jake Averillo comes into the centres after returning from hand surgery through Queensland Cup last week. Averillo replaces Jack Bostock, who is in the NSW team, while Trai Fuller replaces Queensland star Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow at fullback. A fractured wrist for Isaiya Katoa will see Brad Schneider start at halfback. Tevita Naufahu will replace Queensland winger Slewyn Cobbo, with Felise Kaufusi to start at prop in place of Maroons forward Tom Flegler.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Manly centre Clayton Faulalo\u00a0is on track to complete his return from a hamstring injury in Sunday’s showdown with…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":519090,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[568],"tags":[64,63,761,762,158,85],"class_list":["post-773660","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nrl","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-national-rugby-league","tag-nationalrugbyleague","tag-nrl","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/773660","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=773660"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/773660\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/519090"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=773660"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=773660"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=773660"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}