'Looks awful': Sharks star Annessa Biddle suffers nasty elbow dislocation
Cronulla star Annessa Biddle will be racing the clock to return for the remaining rounds of this season after suffering a dislocated elbow in the club's 12-8 win over the Gold Coast Titans.
The Cronulla centre came charging through the middle when she was met by New Zealand teammate Georgia Hale and twisted awkwardly as she fell to the ground.
It was initially unclear the exact injury Biddle had suffered as she laid on the turf at Shark Park and was quickly met by medical attention from team trainers.
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A short break in play eventually saw Biddle return to her feet as she cradled her left arm and walked to the team's sheds.
"It looks awful for Annessa Biddle," league great Allana Ferguson said on Nine.
"She is a very tough player so it is uncharacteristic for her to be rattled in any way, shape or form. Fingers crossed it is not as bad as it looks."
Annessa Biddle of the Sharks dislocates her elbow. Nine
The typical return time for such injury is highly dependent on how clean the dislocation of the elbow. In some cases, athletes are required to undergo surgery.
"Hopefully that is not the case and she can return by the end of the season," Nine's Marlee Silva said of Biddle's recovery timeline.
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Biddle's departure will not be the only concern for the Cronulla Sharks post-match as skipper Tiana Penitani Gray will nervously await her fate over a hip drop tackle.
Penitani Gray was attempting to stop a break down the sideline by Shaylee Bent when she grabbed the hip of her rival while her legs stumbled under her body.
"It wasn't necessarily the best position to make the tackle," Ferguson said.
Sharks skipper Tiana Penitani Gray is pinged for a hip-drop tackle. Nine
Nine caller Peter Psaltis questioned if the tackle would fall under the category of a hip-drop as Penitani Gray's body weight was already on the ground before Bent's legs were collected.
"It is a difficult one ... The definition probably says it is but what else is she supposed to do there?" Queensland great Johnathan Thurston replied.
"She was hanging on for dear life."
The opening 35 minutes was a tightly fought battle that ended with neither team scoring. It is just the second time in the competition's history a first half has panned out like that.
In the 38th minute, the Sharks were left a player down as Anne-Marie Kiria-Ratu was given marching orders for a hip-drop tackle on Jasmine Solia.
In her absence, the Titans powered over in the corner to score their first points via Lauren Brown.
But Emma Verran crossed for a try before teammate Cassie Staples followed just three minutes later.
A desperate defensive display by the Sharks worked in their favour in the final minutes and sealed their 12-8 victory.