Former Test winger Joel Monaghan looks set to miss the opening five rounds of the NRL season with the Canberra star to undergo surgery on a broken thumb on Wednesday.

Monaghan suffered multiple breaks in his left thumb after making a tackle in the dying stages of Saturday night's 32-24 loss to Brisbane at Ballymore.

The 27-year-old visited a specialist on Tuesday, where it was confirmed he would require surgery and an eight week recovery period.

The layoff would see Monaghan miss the opening five rounds of the competition, with his earliest possible return being against the Sydney Roosters in mid-April.

Monaghan played for NSW in game two of last year's State of Origin series, but the early season setback could hurt his chances of unseating incumbents Michael Jennings and Josh Morris for the opening game of the 2010 series.

Backrower Joel Thompson has been named to replace Monaghan in the centres for the club's final trial against Canterbury in Dubbo on Saturday night.

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