Apr 25th, 2019

Apr 25th, 2019

Jason Taumalolo is still on track for an early return to the NRL from a knee injury but it just won't be this Friday against Canterbury.

The North Queensland powerhouse was ruled out by coach Paul Green on Thursday after the captain's run, with his comeback game now expected against Gold Coast on May 3.

The Cowboys (2-4) snapped a three-game losing streak without Taumalolo in Auckland last weekend but Green is wary of the Bulldogs, who he says are travelling better than their 1-5 record suggests.

Taumalolo was initially forecast to miss between six to 10 weeks when he hurt his knee against the Broncos in round two.

While Green said he was just short of the mark this week, a return against the Titans would mean he would only miss five games in a massive boost for the Townsville club.

"Having another couple of days would've been good," Green said.

"But he's a fair bit short of the initial time that they thought it would take (to recover).

"He took part in it (the captain's run), he's not too far away."

Taumalolo was set for a shock return but he needs more time (Getty)

Green said the week had revolved around recovery after a hard-fought win over the Warriors went some way to correcting a season that was starting to slip away.

He said Michael Morgan's timely reminder of his class would serve them well at ANZ Stadium.

"He doesn't have to prove it, he's done it plenty of times in the past," Green said of Morgan's late-game poise.

"It's just good for everyone to get that control back in our game, a good reminder for everyone what we can do."

The Bulldogs have gone close in losses to South Sydney and Melbourne but been blown away by the Warriors, Parramatta and St George Illawarra.

Long-term ankle injuries to Keiran Foran and Dylan Napa haven't helped Canterbury but Green said there was no reason for complacency in prop John Asiata's 100th NRL game.

"They've played some good footy; they're probably a better team than where they sit on the ladder," he said.

"It's important we don't start looking at the ladder and thinking we're going to be in for an easy game."

STATS THAT MATTER

* North Queensland have failed to score more than 17 points in their past five games.

* Canterbury have conceded the most points per game this season (26), followed by the Cowboys (23.5), while the Bulldogs also rank last in tackle busts and points scored (11.7).

* Canterbury have never made the finals after starting the season with one win from seven games.

- AAP

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