Ex-North Queensland prop Josh McGuire looks set to make his debut for St George Illawarra on Sunday with the red hot side chasing five straight NRL wins.
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The 31-year-old former Test and Origin prop joined the club on Tuesday and has been named on the extended bench to face the Warriors.
However, he looks set to be promoted to the 17 on Sunday with Billy Burns and Jackson Ford playing for the Dragons in their 42-6 loss to Penrith in the NSW Cup on Saturday.
Both Ford and Burns were named in Anthony Griffin's 19-man squad 24 hours prior to kick-off at Netstrata Jubilee Stadium.
The Dragons have been on the hunt for an experienced middle this season and Griffin is excited to finally inject McGuire into the side.
"He's a tough forward, someone in the middle of our pack who can play minutes," Griffin said.
"He's a real competitor he's played a lot of high profile football, a lot of Origin and Test football and finals, that experience and attitude he brings is what we're looking for from him."
A veteran of 232 NRL games, McGuire has battled to find a place in the Cowboys' starting side this season under new coach Todd Payten.
His transfer to the Dragons earlier this week is a chance for a fresh start at a club in the midst of a revival.
Last week's 26-12 win over Parramatta marked four straight for the Dragons for the first time since the start of 2019.
"We've got to keep getting better, we can't get anything out of last week's performance points wise, we've got to chase the points against the Warriors," Griffin said.
"They're a team with heaps of talent in their side and they're a hard team to play against.
"The (Warriors) been a bit unlucky, they should have beaten Newcastle and last week they were below their best which will make them even harder to play this week so it's going to be a massive challenge for us."
Australian Associated Press
