Nielsen offered a week

Back-up Melbourne centre Dane Nielsen can escape with a one-game ban following his send-off late in Sunday's win over Wests Tigers at Olympic Park.

Playing his first NRL game of the season and just the third of his career because regular No.4 Greg Inglis is in Sydney with the Queensland squad preparing for Origin II on Wednesday night, Nielsen was dismissed for a high shot on Beau Ryan.

The 24-year-old from Mackay, who made his debut for Cronulla against Manly two years ago, was immediately given his marching orders by referees Ashley Klein and Steve Lyons.

And on Monday Nielsen was slapped with a grade-four careless high tackle charge by the NRL's match review committee, meaning if he unsuccessfully contests the charge he will be outed for two matches.

With Inglis sure to return to the line-up for Sunday's game against the Raiders in Canberra, unless he is forced out following Origin II, Nielsen will almost certainly enter an early guilty plea.

Speaking after the game, stand-in Storm coach Michael Maguire, who was deputising for New South Wales coach Craig Bellamy, had little to say other than to claim Nielsen's hit was an 'accident' and that the club would deal with the matter once the NRL had.

Fortunately for Melbourne the incident came in the 77th minute and the team was able to hang on for a 14-12 win as Wests failed to capitalise on its one-man advantage, with their coach Tim Sheens later admitting his players had 'panicked'.

With current centre Will Chambers and winger Joseph Tomane both heading to Queensland at season's end, Chambers to the Reds in the Super 14 and Tomane to the Titans, Nielsen is hoping to get first crack at replacing one of them.