ST GEORGE Illawarra are still sweating on the return of several big-name stars, but coach Paul McGregor said the current cop need to ensure it's more than a salvage mission when they return.
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Young-gun Zac Lomax joined a packed injury ward when he was ruled out with a broken thumb two days before his side's clash with Manly, joining the likes of Gareth Widdop, James Graham, Tim Lafai and suspended Jack de Belin on the sideline.
Lafai remains "50-50" to return for Friday's clash with North Queensand, but Graham and Widdop are still a month or more away. The finals bird could well of flown by then, with games against Melbourne, Canberra and Souths to follow in the four weeks after Friday's showdown with the Cowboys in Wollongong.
McGregor said his side has not met the challenge of playing undermanned through their 1-6 run, but put the onus on his available crop to turn it around.
"I'm a bit over the soul-searching part of it, we've just got to get on with it to be honest," McGregor said.
"Obviously they play a vital role in your season and we've got five good players missing but I still feel we've got enough quality out there to win games.
"When players wear a jumper, and I spoke about it after the [Manly] game, we've got to want to do the hard part first. This is a great opportunity for guys who are playing to really go after it.
"We've got four Origin players and some really good talented youth to get the job done. It's on all of us to win games while we're missing key personnel and find a way to do that."
The Dragons led 8-0 after 15 minutes against Manly last start only to surrender six tries in 55 minutes to go down by 20.
It continued a frustrating trend of second-half wobbles that's seen the Dragons out-scored by almost 80 points in second 40's in five of their last six outings.
"It's not just one thing when you're losing it's a multitude of things," McGregor said.
"It's just about maintaining standards for 80 minutes. We haven't been able to do that consistently well over the last eight weeks. You can get that back quick to.
"The thing about rugby league is it's on again every week and the bounce of the ball or a moment in a game can really swing momentum quickly. All of a sudden that belief comes back.
"The confidence comes back and that comes back with winning. When you're losing your confidence and belief goes up and down but your self worth's got to stay the same.
"That's the most important thing because they're all good players."
Lafai was named to return for Friday's clash but will be assessed on game day after battling soreness through the week in the ankle he injured against Cronulla in round 11.
"He trained on Tuesday but he pulled up a little bit sore," McGregor said.
"He's probably 50-50 at the moment. He's out there running but if he's not good after training [on Thursday] he won't play.
"We'll see how he pulls up in the morning as to whether he plays. If not he'll be back next week."