Newcastle star Kalyn Ponga will return from injury in time to face his former NRL club North Queensland next weekend.
Ponga has missed the past three weeks with a hamstring complaint, which also ruled him out of Queensland selection for State of Origin III.
Knights coach Nathan Brown confirmed his fullback would be fit to take on the Cowboys at 1300Smiles Stadium on Friday.
It sets up a mouth-watering clash between Ponga and the Cowboys, who fought hard to keep him in Townsville last year.
"He probably could have played at a push this week," Brown told the Nine Network's Sunday Footy Show.
"He did a real tough session at the captain's run and got through that good.
"They're expecting that he'll play."
Brown paid Ponga the ultimate compliment when comparing him to a young Darren Lockyer.
"We thought he was really special," Brown said.
"When I first got told to watch him play I thought what I thought when I first watched Darren Lockyer play, that's what my initial feeling was.
"What I wasn't aware of was his ability to beat people and put people in space.
"Because the Cowboys played more second-man type of stuff, which worked very well for the Cowboys.
"It wasn't until he came to training and was doing what he was doing at training that we thought 'holy s***' this bloke is really something else."
