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Sydney Roosters halfback Sam Walker has been ruled out of the NRL clash with Penrith, the 19-year-old rested due to a shoulder complaint.
Sydney Roosters halfback Sam Walker has been ruled out of Friday night's NRL clash with Penrith while he nurses a shoulder injury.
The 19-year-old has been playing with injuries to both shoulders this season, the latest coming in last week's victory over Gold Coast in which he kicked the winning field goal.
On Thursday, the Roosters officially withdrew the young star from their team with captain James Tedesco, Sam Verrills and Siosiua Taukeiaho all coming back into their lineup.
"He's sore," Roosters coach Trent Robinson said of Walker.
"I'm glad he doesn't have three shoulders or we'd be waiting on the next one.
"He's done one and now he's done another. But they are the rigours of a small half at the moment."
Walker's omission has forced a reshuffle for the Roosters with Adam Keighran named at five-eighth and Lachlan Lam shifting to halfback.
Verrills has moved off the interchange bench to hooker in place of Keighran as he makes his return to the field six weeks after undergoing eye surgery on a semi-detached retina.
The young hooker was just two games into his return from an ACL injury last season when he suffered the bizarre injury.
"He only just got cleared (on Wednesday morning) so that is a real positive for us," Robinson said.
"It's a funny one with the retina, getting it to stick after the operation.
"But then the contact was the big one because we needed to wait for it to stick and for some sight to come back as well.
"It's been a while but it's time for him to get back out there."
Panthers coach Ivan Cleary acknowledged Boyd Cordner's retirement earlier this week and the emotional boost it will give the Roosters.
"I'm sure they will (play for Cordner), but there's emotion in every game. I think both clubs can sense that this is a big game on it's own," he said.
"The top four or five teams have broken away a little bit this year and it's always good to test yourself against another top side."
The Panthers will have all of their State of Origin stars return at Penrith Park after two straight losses in their absence.
