Dolphins utility Max Plath has been cleared of ankle ligament damage as co-captain Tom Gilbert insists last week's flogging by Cronulla won't halt the side's finals tilt.
Queensland star Plath came from the field in the second half of the 66-0 thumping last Saturday with a suspected ankle injury, but scans have cleared him to play eighth-placed North Queensland at Suncorp Stadium on Sunday.
Plath did receive minor damage to a foot, but taped it up on Thursday at training and took part in half of the session as planned.
NSW outside back Jack Bostock missed last week's Dolphins match with concussion, sustained in State of Origin, but is on the track to return along with fullback Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow, who was rested after sustaining a foot complaint playing for the Maroons.
"The expectation is they will play this weekend,. We are just managing their loads," Gilbert said.
"They've had a big six weeks mentally and physically and we just wanted to get them firing for one more game heading into a bye.
"It's great news for us (on Plath), obviously a bit scary there at the time when it happened on the field. He made the right decision to come off and not risk any more damage. That's why he's available for us this weekend.
"But knowing Plathy, even if there was something there, he'd want to play, wear the jersey and be out there with us."
Several pundits have written off the seventh-placed Dolphins as a title threat after they had 50 points put on them for the second time this season. Kristian Woolf's side were thrashed 52-18 in round five by Manly.
"We're happy for people to write us off ... we understand where it comes from, the criticism too," Gilbert said.
"But we've been in this position before and we know if we put our heads down and come here every day with a great attitude, how quickly we can turn it around.
"No-one's lost confidence. That same team lost to Newcastle the week before by one point.
"We had a bad game, an embarrassing game, we didn't play well and we don't accept it here at the Dolphins, but the reality is that it's happened now and we're moving forward."
The Dolphins won eight games in a row from round nine to 16, but Gilbert was not walking away from what happened against the Sharks.
"Well, I know where it came from, it came from us," he said.
"It came from the 17 that put the jersey on. I'm not hiding from the fact that it was unacceptable.
"I know the playing group want to shed that load of responsibility for what we gave on the weekend.
"Obviously after last week we do owe our fans a good performance, so we're lucky we're at home."
