The Dolphins will not be deterred by the loss of injured strike centre Herbie Farnworth as they back the regenerative powers they have shown all season.
Farnworth will miss four to six weeks with the hamstring tear he suffered in the 20-18 win over the Warriors, but captain Isaiya Katoa is adamant they will not be using that as an excuse ahead of the home clash with Sydney Roosters on Saturday night.
Farnworth likes to call himself "Deadpool", in reference to a superhero film where the main character has regenerative powers that heal destroyed organs and tissues at a superhuman rate.
Katoa joked that Farnworth came into training on Monday and said he would be "back next week". That mindset and "Deadpool" theme has been a reflection of the team and all contracted players this year.
The club has been without 11 front-liners at various stages, including their entire starting forward pack with long-term injury, but they have kept winning and forced their way into the top eight.
"Herbie has a positive mentality and it's good to have around the group," Katoa said.
"No one in the competition can play like Herbie and have his impact, but all year we have had that next man up mentality.
"We are not going to use that as an excuse this week or going forward. We have had Max (Feagai) and Jake (Averillo) in the centres this year and they have both been able to fill in, so we are not down in confidence in that aspect.
"We know the guys that come in for Herbie are going to do a really good job for us."
The Dolphins have accepted a two-week suspension for veteran forward Felise Kaufusi, but welcome back barnstorming back-rower Kulikefu Finefeuiaki after a broken thumb.
"He's definitely on track. He has still got a couple of contact sessions to get through with the thumb, but one thing about Kuli is he is tough," Katoa said.
"Whether he is feeling the pain or not he probably won't tell you, and he definitely won't show it. He will always put his body on the line and has done that the whole year."
The development of Finefeuiaki and fellow back-rower Oryn Keeley this year, along with a suite of others, is why the Dolphins are the NRL's "Deadpool" side.
"The credit has got to go to our recruitment and Woolfy (coach Kristian Woolf) in the way they have recruited players to come in with a good attitude to work hard. It is something we built in the pre-season," Katoa said.
"We don't get it right the first month, but we knew as a team and a group we were building resilience. We had guys training in all different positions throughout the pre-season, which set us up for this scenario.
"We are losing guys in important positions but not making excuses. We know we can do a job with the players we have."