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NSW is set to be without experienced second-rower Luke O'Donnell for State of Origin III after the Cowboys forward damaged his knee during his side's hard-fought 24-4 win over Cronulla at Dairy Farmers Stadium.
O'Donnell was forced from the field in the 20th minute after his left leg was bent awkwardly while crashing into the back of Cronulla forward Grant Millington as the pair chased a kick.
The Cowboys star was immediately diagnosed with a grade one medial ligament tear and is at long odds to line up for the Blues in match three of the Origin series in Brisbane on July 15.
It was a sad end to O'Donnell's 100th appearance for North Queensland.
The Cowboys did it tough against the resilient Sharks, finishing with just one reserve after losing O'Donnell, Aaron Payne (shoulder) and John Williams (corked thigh) to injury.
Second half tries to Matt Bowen (2), in his first game back from injury, and John and Ty Williams sealed a victory that was a long time coming.
The teams went to the sheds at half-time with the soccer-like scoreline of 0-0 following a first half dominated by big defence and a heavy penalty count against the home side.
The Sharks did get over the line after 28 minutes through Blake Ferguson, only for the video referee to correctly rule the young winger touched the corner post before planting the ball down.
The second half was only three minutes old when the scoreboard attendant was finally called on.
Johnathan Thurston cut out two players to find John Williams on a narrow passage down the right flank.
Williams went low and hard for the line, slamming the ball down before he was collected by Nathan Stapleton's knees.
Williams became the third Cowboys to leave the field injured.
North Queensland appeared headed for a second try after 54 minutes, Bowen collecting Thurston's clever grubber and exchanging passes before Ferguson chopped the ball down to prevent a certain try.
Stapleton picked up the loose ball but was ruled offside, allowing Thurston to slot an easy penalty goal for a six-point advantage.
Bowen then struck twice in two minutes just past the hour mark to take the game out of Cronulla's reach.
Matthew Wright pulled a try back for Cronulla with 10 minutes to go before Ty Williams responded for the Cowboys to put the seal on the victory.
