Canterbury flyer Josh Addo-Carr hasn't given up hope of a shock start against Cronulla this weekend, just days after leaving his NRL season-opener with an AC joint injury.
It was feared the speedy winger might be facing an extended stint on the sidelines after his early exit against Parramatta, but he's still a chance to face the Sharks on Friday night.
Teammate Jacob Kiraz pointed out Addo-Carr had made a miraculous return from a syndesmosis injury last year three weeks ahead of schedule, hoping the 28-year-old could do something similar this time.
"'Foxx' is always in good spirits and obviously he's going to try his best to get out there on the weekend," he said.
"He did it last year ... shocked everyone when he came back after four or five weeks, and I know he's going to put himself in the best position to play."
The unlikely return would probably deny Connor Tracey his Canterbury debut, having been picked in place of Addo-Carr on his wing.
Former Shark Tracey, 27, joined the Bulldogs in the off-season and has battled his own ankle injury in his early months at the Kennel.
"He's had three ACLs and just seeing the way he is now at training, how professional he is, it's amazing," Kiraz said.
"He's bought into everything we're building here and he's a top bloke as well, so I'm stoked for him.
"For him to be able to play his old club too, it's like a fairy tale."
Whoever plays on the wing, the Bulldogs will need a team-wide lift to match the Sharks after a hefty first-up loss against Parramatta.
Despite the 26-8 loss, coach Cameron Ciraldo said he couldn't have been prouder of his side with Kiraz also finding the positives in the defeat.
"It was a gutsy effort and it doesn't help when we make too many errors," he said.
"The first 10 to 15 minutes, especially with our goal-line defence was unreal, we just kept turning up for each other.
"We can't have possession like that every week because we're just shooting ourselves in the foot ... we need to complete and make it easier for ourselves."
