Sharks forward Chris Heighington spoke with the media at Sydney Airport this morning before his side heads to Townsville with the hope of breaking the Cowboys winning streak on Saturday night.
Heighington said that it was unfortunate Captain Paul Gallen was unable to travel with the side and said it was a big loss to the Sharks chances of victory.
"It's massive (the loss). Obviously he's the leader of our team and Captain," said Heighington.
"He's been inspirational for years so it's a bit disappointing but hopefully we can do it without him."
The forward said that the Cowboys, who are currently on an 11-game winning streak, are in red-hot form however he believes the Sharks can take the challenge to the North Queensland side.
"Obviously they're going good and we've got a big task ahead of ourselves but we're up for the challenge."
Hear the rest of Heighington's interview LIVE now on Sharks TV.
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