North Queensland's long injury list has another addition with Kurt Baptiste's knee injury suffered on Test duty confirmed as season-ending.
The utility went down while playing for Papua New Guinea in Saturday's Test against Samoa and the NRL club announced on Monday he'd suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament.
Baptiste will undergo surgery later in the week and the Cowboys have ruled him out for the remainder of the 2019 season.
He is one of 10 players out through injury for the Cowboys as they prepare to take on St George Illawarra this Friday.
Winger Nene Macdonald is sidelined with a season-ending ankle injury while Te Maire Martin (brain bleed), Justin O'Neill (ruptured spleen) and Mitch Dunn (shoulder) all have indefinite recovery periods.
Former Queensland Origin representatives Coen Hess (knee) and Matt Scott (shoulder) are also unavailable to face the Dragons, along with Ben Hampton (biceps), Jordan McLean (hamstring) and Gideon Gela-Mosby (collarbone).
Adding to coach Paul Green's woes, back-rower Josh McGuire is facing a one-game ban after being charged with grade one dangerous contact head/neck for a late hit on NSW five-eighth James Maloney in Sunday's State of Origin clash in Perth.
Australian Associated Press
