Cowboys coach Paul Green still unsure if he’ll play Matt Scott in the grand final

PAUL Green is unsure about injured co-captain Matt Scott’s grand final return, admitting ‘you don’t get too many grand finals come along’.

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA — SEPTEMBER 23: Matt Scott of the Cowboys looks on before the NRL Preliminary Final match between the Sydney Roosters and the North Queensland Cowboys at Allianz Stadium on September 23, 2017 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images)

PAUL Green remains torn about whether to give injured co-captain Matt Scott the green light to make his long-awaited return in Sunday night’s decider.

“You don’t get too many grand finals come along,” Green said.

While league legend Darren Lockyer is adamant Scott should not play, Green said he had to weigh up “risk versus reward”.

Scott, 32, hasn’t played since he suffered what was thought to be a season-ending ACL knee injury in round two.

At his best, Scott is still regarded as the best prop in the game.

Scott was named in the Cowboys squad last week.

But if he suffered a recurrence of the injury it could end his career.

The other factor Lockyer believed Green needed to consider was how it could potentially affect the squad’s “chemistry”.

“My view is that the 17 guys who played there (against the Roosters) have done a wonderful effort to get to the grand final,” Lockyer told Channel 9.

“And as much as Matt Scott has done for the club, for the Cowboys, I just think it would be the wrong decision to allow Matt to play in the grand final.

“Matt Scott at his best, it is an easy decision.

“But he hasn’t played for six, seven months.

“He might be able to come on for 10 or 15 minutes and do a job.

“But again, I think it comes back to the chemistry among the current team.

“I think to break that up is very risky.”

Scott has trained for the last couple of weeks.

Green said before the Roosters game that Scott had earned the right to be named in a 21-man squad and at least be given a shot to play.

Ultimately, Green made the call not to play him and the Cowboys pack didn’t take a backward step all night.

If Scott came in it would cost someone a grand final appearance, possibly Corey Jensen, who has played 16 games this year after making his debut in round seven.

Before returning home to Townsville, Green said he had not made up his mind.

“At this stage we are still in recovery mode,” Green said.

“Until we get together (on Monday) and get over the flight I haven’t thought too much about it.”

Asked if Scott would be at 100 per cent if he did play, Green said: “That is a difficult question to answer because it is kind of like how long is a piece of string.

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“When you do a knee, have an ACL reconstruction, the longer you rest the less the risk of reinjuring it.

“So there is still a risk there if he plays.

“It is just balancing the risk versus reward.

“You don’t get too many grand finals come along, so that is what we will go through this week.”

Jensen, 23, said the team had to come first.

“It’s my first year in the NRL and to make a grand final is a dream come true,” he said.

“It’s a team-first mentality. Thumper (Scott) is one of our captains and an international player. He’s a great player for the club.

“If he was to come back and I was to miss out … the team comes first and I know he’ll do the job and do it proudly.”