Dolphins, Maroons face nervous wait after Hammer blow

Dolphins fans will be sweating on the fitness of Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow, after the speedster limped off with a hamstring injury in his side's loss to the Broncos.

The 22-year-old was taken from the field mid-way through the 'Battle of Brisbane' on Friday night at a jam-packed Suncorp Stadium, with initial concerns over a hip issue.

However, after an assessment from the Dolphins medical staff in the sheds, it was confirmed Tabuai-Fidow had sustained a hamstring injury and was spotted with ice strapped to his upper-leg as he returned to sit on the bench.

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The fullback was ruled out for the remainder of the match as confirmed by Nine's Danika Mason, which saw Wayne Bennett forced to reshuffle his backline.

Tabuai-Fidow's potential absence would be a major blow for the NRL ladder-leaders, who have started the season in strong form off the back of the star fullback's efforts.

"He's an integral part of their footy side, so for him to be on the sidelines isn't great for the Dolphins," rugby league legend Johnathan Thurston said on Nine.

"No doubt he will get scans over the coming days to see how bad that tear is, but it looks like it could be a couple of weeks."

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The injury could also cause concern for Queensland heading into State of Origin, with the Dolphins flyer starring for the Maroons in the 2023 series.

To make matters worse for the Dolphins, they were outclassed in a messy second-half display by the Broncos, who ran out eventual 28-14 winners.

"He's their real strike player, he's the point of difference in the Dolphins attack," Billy Slater said post-game on Nine.

"They are already decimated with injuries and when Hammer went off, the Broncos really suffocated them."

Selwyn Cobbo crossed for a quickfire double, pouncing on errors from the opposition, while Reece Walsh capped off his return from injury with a dazzling long-range effort.

Bennett was on the defensive regarding his side's injury crisis post-game.

"He won't be around for a few weeks now," he said.

"It's not too bad. He's had a history of hamstrings ... it will be three or four weeks. We've got some centres there that will play fullback, but then we've got to replace them.

"I've been doing this job a long time, we've had a lot of injuries across my coaching career ... just trust me we will deal with it.

The Dolphins will drop to third place following the loss and take on the Eels next week.