Key position players still available for Brisbane Broncos despite State of Origin commitments depleting team

BRISBANE'S Origin depleted NRL side might have lost their heart and soul, but for the first time since 1995 they haven't lost their spine.

Peter Wallace

BRISBANE'S Origin depleted NRL side might have lost their heart and soul for this weekend, but for the first time since 1995 they haven't lost their spine.

The Broncos' annual challenge of standing tall without their Queensland Origin stars will be slightly easier in 2012 because the club's key position players - fullback, five-eighth, halfback and hooker - have not been ripped away for Origin duty.

The only time Brisbane didn't provide at least one key position player for Origin was in 1995 when they were banned from Origin because they'd signed to join the Super League.

In recent years Darren Lockyer and Karmichael Hunt have missed club games on Maroons duty, but not this season with young quartet Josh Hoffman, Corey Norman, Peter Wallace and Andrew McCullough all available to play the Roosters at Allianz Stadium on Sunday.

Stand-in skipper Alex Glenn knows having the same "spine" will make a big difference as they cover the loss of at least five players.

"I guess having those four playing week in, week out you don't really lose too much structure of the game and how we want to play out on the field so it definitely helps having those four still out there," Glenn said.

"It's definitely an important game. Every game when you don't have your big stars playing is definitely a great challenge for us players and also the younger players stepping up into the positions."

Glenn said the forwards need to rise to the challenge this week. Not only are they covering the absence of Sam Thaiday, Petero Civoniceva, Ben Hannant and Matt Gillett, but they'll face an imposing Roosters pack headed by Kiwi firebrand Jared Waerea-Hargreaves.

"He is a very in-your-face sort of player, he really gets the Roosters confidence when he comes up with some big hits," Kiwi Test partner Glenn said.

"He is an aggressive player out there. Yeah definitely, I will be keeping my eye on him, he loves getting in the face of his opposition which is something we need to do this weekend.

"They've got the power in that middle and that is something we have to aim up going into Sunday's match. So starting from today's training we really have got to have that mentality that they're going to be coming through the middle and we need to take up that challenge."