It takes something serious to keep Dale Finucane down.
The Storm hard-man has built a reputation for fronting up week after week as a picture of consistency in the purple pack yet a thumb injury has seen him miss a total of nine games in 2018.
Finucane first fractured his right thumb in Round 4 against the Sharks and did not return until Round 9 after having a small screw inserted.
However that screw suffered a heavy knock against the Cowboys just four weeks later resulting in a further two month stint on the sidelines.
For a player not used to watching his teammates from the stands, the 26-year-old admits it was a frustrating time.
"It was a bit of a pain the last few weeks, I thought I would've been back about three weeks ago but it took a bit longer than I expected," Finucane said.
"Being the second time around the fracture takes a little bit longer to heal.
"The performance staff were a little bit more conservative this time around. I think if I needed to get another operation it would have taken 6-8 weeks which would've taken us until the end of the season."
Finucane returned to the side on Sunday, coming off the bench against the Warriors in the 12-6 win.
He may have to wear a brace now on that thumb but it is a small price to pay to avoid having to sit on the sidelines any longer.
"It is the most games I've ever missed in my career," Finucane said.
"Prior to that I had an injury in 2015 where I dislocated my elbow and missed three games with that, prior to that I'd never had any injuries.
"I've only played nine games this year and coming in towards the back end of the year I don't feel like I've played a lot of football which is probably a good thing. I'm feeling pretty fresh at this point in the season."
