Manly's backline has taken a hit with speedster Tolutau Koula facing a stint on the sidelines after suffering a knee injury in his side's Round 26 victory over the Dragons.
The 22-year-old centre lit up Jubilee Stadium early, crossing for a try in the 20th minute, but his night was cut short just nine minutes later.
Koula went down clutching his left knee after a heavy collision and was assisted from the field by club trainers, bringing an abrupt end to what had been a bright performance.
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Tolutau Koula sidelined with knee injury
Sea Eagles coach Anthony Seibold confirmed post-match that the initial diagnosis forecasts at least a month on the sidelines for the Tongan international.
"The initial assessment is it's a grade two MCL and generally speaking that's a 4-6 weeks out for something like that," said Seibold in his post-match press conference.
Tolu Koula will go for scans after suffering a knee injury - initial testing from the Sea Eagles suggests a moderate grade MCL injury & 4-6 weeks recovery.
— NRL PHYSIO (@nrlphysio) August 30, 2025
Mechanism video unclear - considering instability present with hands on testing Koula’s season very likely over but… pic.twitter.com/FikM9sOF0N
This setback is untimely for Koula, who has been one of Manly's most consistent attacking weapons in 2025.
He's scored 16 tries in 21 appearances this year, averaging 151 run metres and notched up 17 line breaks and 77 tackle busts.
His efforts are likely to earn him selection for Tonga in this year's Pacific Championships which kicks off in late-October.
The Sea Eagles win also kept their top-eight hopes alive with one round remaining in the regular season. Koula's injury may force him to miss any semblance of a finals campaign that his side can put together.