The 20-year-old will play on the wing after Cody Ramsey was unable to overcome a rib injury suffered in last week's loss to the Tigers.

Mat will line up in the same team as his twin Max, the brothers having progressed through the junior ranks together. Sunday's match will be Max's fourth in the top flight.

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Originally from Leeton, the pair moved to Wollongong as teenagers to play for the Steelers and attend Illawarra Sports High. There they led the side to the 2019 SG Ball premiership before they were named in the Australian Schoolboys team later that year.

The brothers have often been compared to Kiama twins Brett and Josh Morris, with many predicting the duo will follow in their footsteps.

Dragons coach Anthony Griffin tipped Mat to impress in his first game in the NRL.

"It's a massive moment for the family," Griffin said. "It's a great story for the club, they've been in our system since they were 15 years old.

"It's special for twins to be playing together and to see both in an NRL side will be a great thrill for them and a great achievement for our club to be able to give them both an opportunity to play together."

Sunday's match comes as NRL players were forced back into a bubble on Thursday, head office introducing strict COVID-19 restrictions in response to two recent cases in Sydney.

Players and officials must only leave the house for a small number of reasons, including training, matches and to collect takeaway meals.

While a number of players spoke of bubble fatigue towards the back end of last season, Dragons skipper Ben Hunt said they have learnt a number of lessons from their 2020 experience.

"It's been something that has been in the back of our minds that it could happen all season," Hunt said. "I think we've done pretty well to get this far.

"It's something we're pretty used to now after last year so it's just getting back into the protocols and doing all the right things again."

Hunt is looking to lead his team back to the winner's circle, St George Illawarra losing their past three games.

The halfback was disappointed with his performance in his return from injury last weekend, however he's confident he, and his teammates, will produce a much-improved showing against the Bulldogs.

"I was pretty disappointed with my game last week, I didn't think I played as well as I wanted to. I'm looking to come out and play a lot better this week.

"We're going to be pretty desperate to get the two points and I know the Bulldogs will be coming out raring to go too.

"We need to be a lot better than we were last week and the week before if we want to win, but I'm confident the boys are pretty hungry and we'll come out and get the job done."

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