North Queensland back Kyle Feldt admits star half Johnathan Thurston looks a little lost as he prepares for life without State of Origin.
But having retired from representative football, Thurston's NRL availability during the Origin period will be a bonus for a side currently floundering in second last spot.
Fellow co-captain Matt Scott, overlooked for an Origin berth, could join him in club colours this Thursday if the prop can overturn a grade one shoulder charge citing at the judiciary.
The Cowboys will still be without Queensland trio Coen Hess, Michael Morgan and Gavin Cooper in what Feldt described as a strange situation in Townsville.
"Losing Coops, Hessy and Morgs is a big blow ... but we've got Johno, that's enough," he said of the Origin ins and outs.
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"It's a strange feeling having him here. It's different; he's excited I think and a little bit lost, he doesn't know what to do with himself."
Scott, along with Broncos captain Darius Boyd, was the biggest casualty in the squad named by coach Kevin Walters on Monday.
He will fight his charge in an effort to return for the Cowboys, in serious danger of missing finals, in a crucial battle with Manly on Thursday.
"He's just focused on what he's got to do to get back (to play on Thursday), I think he would be disappointed but he hasn't said anything," Feldt said of the veteran forward.
Origin call-ups are also likely to facilitate the returns of dropped pair Lachlan Coote and Ethan Lowe, who were victims of the side's 3-9 start to the season.
