Steady Pettybourne to replace injured Galloway at prop - Sydney Morning Herald

New recruit: Pettybourne. Photo: Darren Pateman

New Wests Tigers recruit Eddy Pettybourne has no complaints about moving into the front row as the club deals with the loss of representative prop Keith Galloway for up to four months due to a pectoral muscle tear.

Galloway will undergo surgery on Wednesday after scans confirmed initial fears when he came from the field just after half-time in Sunday's 28-18 defeat of Penrith at Campbelltown Stadium.

There was better news for the Tigers on Monday, when rookie halfback Jacob Miller was cleared of anything more serious than a sprained right ankle. The 20-year-old is expected to be named for Friday night's match against Parramatta at Leichhardt Oval. Aaron Woods is expected to move into the starting side in place of Galloway, but Pettybourne said he was prepared to play in the front row to help cover the loss.

''I will play anywhere in the 17; it is a good feeling to be in the team,'' Pettybourne said. ''I am usually a back-rower but playing front row is getting back to my roots.''

Pettybourne, who joined the Tigers from South Sydney, was thrust into the front row in his first match with the club after Galloway's injury, and said he enjoyed the role.

''I didn't get on until the second half but it was good, so hopefully I can get a bit more time next week,'' he told the club's website.

''I thought that I needed to prove a point but I guess I still have a lot to work on. I just want to get better every week. First of all, I have to work on my defence, probably just working as a team and getting used to the front row.''

Meanwhile, former Canberra and Penrith centre Adrian Purtell says he was overwhelmed by the standing ovation he received on returning to competitive rugby league for Bradford Bulls, 10 months after a heart attack.

The 28-year-old came off the bench on Sunday to rapturous applause that briefly stopped the game against Hull Kingston Rovers in the first half. He played out the match, which the Bulls won 34-12. Purtell had not played since being taken ill after Bradford's defeat by Leeds in May last year.