Canberra Raiders doctors are combing through every one of Corey Harawira-Naera's tackles and hit ups in an attempt to uncover any incident that may have contributed to his on-field seizure on the weekend.
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But in a slice of good news amongst all the uncertainty, medical staff have all but ruled out a heart condition as the reason why he collapsed with 15 minutes left in the Raiders' clash against the Rabbitohs.
Harawira-Naera will have more scans and tests in the coming days and he has been ruled out indefinitely until the circumstances become clearer.
Raiders staff have been working with the Westmead Hospital in the search for answers after the second-rower was rushed to hospital.
So far they still don't know what happened to cause the incident or why Harawira-Naera had a seizure, but looking at every bit of his involvement in the game is helping piece the puzzle together.
Raiders coach Ricky Stuart was reluctant to describe anything as positive given there are still so many unknowns, but scans did show no abnormalities withHarawira-Naera's heart.
Officials are also discussing whether there was delayed concussion after Harawira-Naera's head appeared to crash into the ball on the ground during a tackle.
The rugby league world has been edge since the scary scenes at Homebush. It brought the game to a standstill and both teams combined to offer protection.
Harawira-Naera was released from hospital early on Sunday morning and has had several scans and tests, and he was buoyed by some good news - if you can call it that - on Monday.
"I don't have a medical background, but we're very fortunate that our club doctors Greg Macleod and Jack Cookson have done a wonderful job through all of this," Stuart said.
"They have been amazing with their on-field work and now also their investigation with Westmead in regards to finding the cause.
"Corey got some positive news today after some testing. It's looking more and more likely that it's come from head trauma.
"He had a knock to the head in a tackle when he took the ball up and it looks like his face has landed on the ball on the ground.
"That looks like it may be the cause of the seizure, which I believe is a more positive result to anything to do with the heart."
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The NRL community has rallied around Harawira-Naera, with messages flooding the Raiders social media pages and players reaching out to make sure he knows he is supported.
But his absence, and a host of other injuries, will cause a significant reshuffle in the Raiders side for a clash against the Wests Tigers at Campbelltown on Friday.
Jordan Rapana and Xavier Savage are the fullback options to replace Sebastian Kris, with Rapana believed to be the front-runner.
Hudson Young is expected to be named to return for Canberra to play just two days after making his State of Origin debut for NSW.
The Raiders are hoping Young gets through his first Origin game unscathed given Harawira-Naera is out of action and Elliott Whitehead is also on the injured list.
Stuart will likely name a raft of forward options on Tuesday before fine-tuning his line-up when the team trains on Wednesday.
Jarrod Croker will be rested and Kris has been ruled out after injuring his knee last weekend, but Rapana has showed no signs of concussion after being taken off late for an assessment in the clash against Souths.
Young looms as a straight replacement for Harawira-Naera, with Corey Horsburgh likely to stay on the other edge. Stuart is still working out who would come into the team if Young is unable to back up.
Harawira-Naera was recalled to the Raiders' side last week after spending a fortnight in reserve grade trying to build up his game time.
He was solid in his 65 minutes against the Rabbitohs and the Raiders were leading when he collapsed on the field and had a seizure.
Medical staff and players rushed to his side, with both teams forming a human barrier to shield him from the view of spectators and television cameras.
The players' efforts have been widely praised given the game was in the balance when the incident happened. The Raiders went on to record a crucial 33-26 victory despite the emotional toll of watching their teammate suffer.
NRL head of football Graham Annesley also praised medical staff from both teams for their swift actions.
"The game stopped for a considerable period of time while he was tended to by the medical staff," Annesley said.
"I hope he goes on and recovers fully and is back on the field soon. But I also did want to point out that an unsung part of the game that often goes without recognition is the medical service that is provided by the NRL and the clubs.
"We have doctors, trainers, paramedics on standby at every ground. It was just remarkable the speed and efficiency that they went about their job attending to Corey.
"There were four club doctors - two from each team - were all on the field helping Corey and helping each other, led by the Raiders chief medical officer Dr Greg Macleod. It's testament to this game that whenever we see someone in trouble, everyone forgets about the colour of the jersey and which team they work for or support."
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