HEAVYWEIGHT BATTLE Green calls for lift ahead of Roosters clash
INJURIES have forced yet another backline reshuffle for Paul Green’s men as the Cowboys look to atone for their woes against Parramatta.
As if being confronted by defending champions the Sydney Roosters was not enough of a challenge, the North Queensland outfit will also have to do so without Justin O’neill and Tom Opacic.
O’neill was taken from the field with a HIA during the clash with the Eels, while Opacic – who had showed promising form since returning to the team against the Knights – suffered a knee injury at training and could be missing for a few weeks.
It has spared New Zealand international Esan Marsters any chance of the axe falling on him after some lacklustre defensive displays – highlighted by the four tries scored by Eels flyer Maika Sivo.
However Green said Marsters was far from alone in needing to lift his game – the entire right edge needed to show greater faith in each other to pick themselves back up against a daunting Roosters unit.
“It makes it difficult when you lose Justin O’neill and
Tommy, it makes it difficult to drop somebody on form when you’re lacking experience and the guys you’ve got to replace them are rookies,” he said.
“But there’s no doubt Esan needs to play better, he’d be the first to admit that. He’s not on his own there. I think that whole right edge certainly need to be better, and they’ll get tested this week – they’ve got a quality edge coming at them.
“Everyone could have done something better to help each other on the weekend, that comes with a bit of confidence but you only get confidence when you execute properly and that’s how you build it.”
Prop Jordan Mclean is still out this week, after the calf injury he sustained against the Warriors tightened up again towards the end of the Newcastle game.
His absence has opened the door for teenage firebrand Tom Gilbert to return from suspension at Queensland Country Bank Stadium.
Green said the 19-year-old brought plenty of energy to a contest, and that would be the hope for him when he gets introduced off the bench on Thursday.
After suffering a heavy defeat at the hands of one premiership contender, the Cowboys will be looking to bounce back against a Roosters side fresh off arguably the match of the year against the Melbourne Storm.
The extra-time loss for the tricolours showcased two sides who were adept at maintaining their performance across 80 minutes of football, and that is where Green said the difference was between the top and bottom sides.
He said the Roosters and Storm were the two form sides who had managed to contain the effort required for a long period of time, and that is what the Cowboys would need to replicate this week.
“Thursday night is where it matters most, that’s where I really want to see the effort, but we’ll only have the one training run and then our final practice on Wednesday so there’s not a lot of training we can do with the short turnaround,” Green said.
“I think the attitude part in particular and the energy is something we can definitely have – that’s not about training, that’s about making sure you’re in the right mindset when you turn up to play.
“The difference is when teams do switch off that’s when they switch right off, and that’s probably our problem.
“When we get our best game on we can probably go with anyone in the comp, but when we’re not at our best in games there’s a fair gap between that and that’s the consistency we’re trying to get.” so Tabuai-fidow will assume the position against the Sydney Roosters.
Coach Paul Green said the idea behind the move was twofold — to enable
Holmes to ease back from his ankle sprain and to strengthen the experience in the centre-wing combinations.
The Cowboys’ edges have been a concern in defence,