North Queensland captain Johnathan Thurston has failed in his bid to convince coach Paul Green to include him in the Cowboys' squad for this weekend's Auckland Nines.
The Cowboys submitted their 18-man squad for the pre-season tournament on Tuesday and while it doesn't feature their superstar playmaker, it does include nine members of last year's victorious side.
Green said it was not worth exposing Thurston, who had shoulder surgery in the off-season, to the possibility of injury.
"At the end of the day it wasn't really worth the risk," he said.
"He's got enough footy ahead of him coming up given the All-Stars trial and he'll get most of (our) trial against the Titans.
"That will prepare him well for the season coming ahead."
Thurston also missed last year's Auckland Nines tournament, which the Cowboys won after defeating the Brisbane Broncos 16-7 in the final.
Despite the skipper's absence, the Cowboys have named an impressive team to defend their crown.
Back-rower Gavin Cooper will lead a squad that includes Kiwi giant Jason Taumalolo and new recruits Justin O'Neill, Kelepi Tanginoa and Jake Granville.
The bolter is 18-year-old Coen Hess, who played Holden Cup for the Cowboys last year and was brought to Brisbane as part of the Emerging Maroons camp earlier this month.
Green admitted North Queensland has barely tailored their preparations to the shortened format and will treat the tournament with the right balance of professionalism and frivolity.
"It's really good in that respect that it's probably not as serious as an NRL season, but I'm sure once the balls get kicked off it'll get fair dinkum pretty quickly," he said.
"Once we get over there, it's a competition like everything else - once you're in it, you want to do your best.
"Anytime we're wearing the Cowboys jersey we want to put on a good show for our fans.
"That's the attitude amongst the boys."
One player who won't travel across the Tasman is Lachlan Coote, who suffered a season-ending knee injury in last year's Auckland Nines.
Coote was set to be named in the squad but has misplaced his passport and had to pull out.
"I don't know whether he lost it, he just couldn't find it," Green said.
"You'll probably have to ask Cootey about that."
Cowboys: Michael Morgan, Justin O'Neill, Tautau Moga, Kyle Feldt, Matthew Wright, Ray Thompson, Robert Lui, John Asiata, Rory Kostjasyn, Kelepi Tanginoa, Gavin Cooper (capt), Ethan Lowe, Jason Taumalolo, Jake Granville, Zac Santo, Coen Hess, Javid Bowen, Ben Spina.
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