Cut down to size by a halfback, struggling NSW prop James Tamou has been backed by North Queensland coach Paul Green to stand tall against Melbourne on Monday night.

Tamou’s fall from grace appeared complete when diminutive Brisbane No.7 Ben Hunt muscled past the 194cm, 113kg ex-Test front-rower to score in the winless Cowboys’ horror 44-22 NRL loss at Suncorp Stadium.

It was one of two defensive howlers committed by Blues enforcer Tamou that led to tries.

But rather than punish Tamou, Green has rewarded him with the No.10 jersey and benched Ben Hannant for the home clash with the Storm.

It marks the first time this season Tamou will start in the front row after surprising medical staff and recovering from neck surgery in time to play round one.

“Jimmy’s had a pretty serious injury that he’s had to get fixed up and also come back from, so he’s certainly heading in the right direction,” Green said.

“I think there’s also plenty of improvement left in him, which is a good thing.

“He’s contributing to the team, but we just need more – not only out of Jimmy but everyone.”

Tamou is not the only player with the defensive wobbles.

The Cowboys missed 34 tackles to Brisbane’s 16.

However, the spotlight has fallen on Tamou due to the extra defensive work his underwhelming return from injury has created for Test prop Matt Scott.

Scott was spent in attack for North Queensland after being forced to make 44 tackles against the Broncos.

It has already fuelled speculation Tamou is at risk of losing his NSW front-row spot to Paul Gallen with Andrew Fifita moving to lock in a re-shuffled Blues Origin pack under coach Laurie Daley.

But Green believed the answer was to keep the faith with Tamou.

“Those guys don’t forget how to play footy,” he said.

“So it’s about reminding them of the good stuff they can do and being prepared to fight harder when the game’s on the line, and getting back to the things we do best.”