NSW prop David Klemmer admits he will require a pain-killing injection to take part in the State of Origin decider after making a barnstorming return from his broken wrist.
The sights of Klemmer bending the line and dragging defenders behind him during Newcastle's 26-12 NRL win over Brisbane would have been a welcome sight for Blues coach Brad Fittler.
Fittler does have one headache on his hands in the form of halfback Nathan Cleary - who is battling an ankle injury but is expected to be included on an extended bench and given every chance to prove his fitness.
But any doubts about Klemmer's ability to stand up to the game's toughest arena were erased as he trampled the Broncos, running for 196m in an ironman performance on Saturday which included playing the first 49 minutes.
Klemmer spent the past three weeks on the sideline after fracturing his wrist in Origin I.
He is expected to be a straight swap for St George Illawarra's Tariq Sims, who's facing a two-game ban for his high shot on North Queensland's Michael Morgan.
"It's all good at the moment," Klemmer said.
"I can't feel it, it's a bit numb.
"I think the next six or seven weeks I'll probably have to (have a pain-killing injection), it's a part of footy."
Klemmer isn't a stranger to needles and he regularly requires injections on the middle finger on his right hand which was badly broken last year.
He admitted to some nerves going into his first game back and throughout the match he was seen flexing his left hand as he tried to get the feeling back.
He says the Blues' Origin I loss still burns him and he's hungry to atone at ANZ Stadium on Wednesday week.
"I was pretty frustrated and angry, that first half we had them at 8-0, but we lost that game," Klemmer said.
"It was frustrating to be a part of and I was that stoked and happy for those boys over in Perth because the guys they brought in did a tremendous job."
Klemmer insisted his return to the Blues shouldn't come at the expense of Newcastle teammate Daniel Saifiti.
"I don't think he should be flicked," Klemmer said.
"He did a tremendous job from the kick-off, he made a statement and he held his own."
After initially being ruled out for up to a month, Cleary is expected to begin running on his injured ankle on Monday, just hours before Fittler names his team.
It's expected that Mitchell Pearce will be brought into the squad as cover, however, Fittler does have other options in bench utility Wade Graham.
