NRL 2019: Origin stars back on deck for Dragons

The Monday fixture gave the trio a five-day recovery period, though Jai Field will be retained on the bench as cover for Hunt who punched out 80 minutes at hooker in Queensland's Origin I victory.

Sitting 13^th on the ladder on the back of five straight losses amid a wider injury toll, McGregor could ill-afford to be without the trio but said the longer turnaround made the call on their availability an easier one.

"They're in really good spirits, all healthy and they'll all play," McGregor said.

"We're fortunate to have a five-day turn post-Origin, we gave them three days off so the first time they've been here is [Sunday] morning.

"This is the longest turn we've got for all the Origins. We'll be missing them for one of the games and we don't get this big a break between games for the remainder of the series.

"This is the perfect situation, if the players pull through OK, for them to play. You go in with a plan and that plan is to play the guys for the minutes we think they can get through, but we'll see the scenario in the game."

Hunt provided an emphatic answer to questions about whether he could play 80 minutes in the middle of the park for the Maroons, going the distance and playing a key role in the 18-14 win.

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McGregor expects the performance to reboot his confidence after wearing a heap of flak in the Dragons five-game losing stretch.

"When you get the result [Queensland] got, and Ben being a big part of that in an unfamiliar position has to give him a lot of confidence," McGregor said.

"I thought Benny for the first 15-20 minutes he was really gassing but he pushed through that period and as the game went on he just got stronger and stronger.

"He really went to the game in the second half and was one of the better performed players on the field at nine.

"He was a bit sore two days post-game but today [Sunday] he's feeling really good. We'll carry Jai Field on the bench if Benny starts to fatigue due to the change in position but I can't see that being a problem to be honest."

A confidence boost is much needed in clubland, with the Dragons slumping to 13^th on the ladder on the back their fifth consecutive loss to Cronulla a fortnight ago.

They remain just one win outside the eight but a loss to last-placed Canterbury on Monday would make a climb back into finals contention a steep climb.

McGregor said his side is not immune to the pressure but said ladder-gazing won't help them turn their campaign around with still half a season remaining.

"Every team will have it's challenges and be under pressure at different stages and certainly right now, when you lose consecutive games on the bounce, you feel that," he said.

"It's a challenge, we need to stand tall and deliver a result. We've got to remain focused on the process and work really hard towards winning games of footy.

"We've come up with some key areas we need to improve on but it's not panic stations, it's more about making sure we do everything we can to get the result we need."