Melbourne Storm centre Jack Howarth has had an injury-curtailed 2025 season, with a variety of setbacks restricting the Queensland Origin hopeful to just 16 first-grade appearances.
However it was only after Sunday’s grand final loss to the Brisbane Broncos that the 22-year-old revealed the full extent of his woes, admitting he’d played much of the season with a torn meniscus, along with an even bigger health concern that came as a huge mid-season shock.
“This whole year I’ve had a few issues with my left knee where I’ve had a torn meniscus,” Howarth told News Corp.
“It caused a lot of problems along the way with it, where other body parts start compensating so I had a lot of niggles that set me back.”
MORE: Which players are leaving and arriving at the Storm?
Howarth also revealed he suffered appendicitis earlier in the season, with subsequent scans leading to the discovery of a tumour by his doctors.
“I got a scan on my appendix, but then they found a tumour next to it as well,” he said.
“It could have been a lot worse down the track, I was a bit rattled. The doctor told me I was really lucky that I did get my appendix looked at because they found that early.”
Howarth’s wretched 2025 injury run began with an eye socket injury back in the pre-season, then came a dislocated shoulder and appendicitis which cost him a potential Maroons debut, before battling ongoing knee and groin issues throughout the back end of the NRL season.
The groin injury ultimately saw him leave the field early in the first half of the grand final against Brisbane, forcing Howarth to watch most of the decider from the sidelines—a place he’ll be desperately hoping to avoid with an injury-free 2026.