Newcastle’s hopes for a top-four finish took a blow on Sunday with five-eighth Blake Green suffering a suspected ACL injury in their 12-0 win over North Queensland.
In just his third game for the Knights, Green buckled under the weight of a tackle and was taken from the field midway through the first half.
It’s a huge blow for the 33-year-old who joined the club on a short-term deal until the end of the season as a stop-gap solution for a troubling casualty ward at the Knights.
Already this season Newcastle have lost Jayden Brailey to an ACL injury, as well as fellow dummy halves Andrew McCullough (hamstring) and Connor Watson (Achilles) for the remainder of the season.
The Knights scrambled to replace Green in Newcastle on Sunday, forcing Kurt Mann back into the halves and young halfback Phoenix Crossland into dummy half.
And with eight regular starters missing through injury, it could be the way they line up through the remainder of the season with five games left until finals.
After Knights fullback Kalyn Ponga put Hymel Hunt over in the 15th minute, neither side could find their rhythm as swirling wind played havoc with the passing and kicking attempts.
The hosts didn’t cross again until the dying minutes when Ponga again shot a ball out to the edge, this time for former Cowboys centre Enari Tuala to score.
But things got complicated for the Knights when halfback Mitchell Pearce was sent to the sin bin for a professional foul on halftime, leaving Kurt Mann to steer the ship.
They then toughed out the second half with just two players on the bench after winger Starford To’a was taken off with concussion in the 33rd minute.
For all the Cowboys’ errors, their defence was resolute but could not land a blow in attack.
There are fears for star forward Jason Taumalolo, who limped off the field with a lower leg injury in the second half and didn’t return.
Prop Josh McGuire could be in trouble for a lazy coat-hanger tackle on Ponga late in the second half which was put on report.
The sloppy loss adds to a miserable season for the Cowboys who have not been held scoreless since 2010.
It was their eighth straight loss and the 11th from their past 12 games.
The Knights are sixth on the ladder and appear set to play finals for the first time since 2013, while the Cowboys remain 14th with just three wins this season.