It was a tough road to success in 2004 with injuries again taking key players out of action, including Matt Sing who suffered a broken jaw in the State of Origin series and Glenn Morrison who suffered a broken back mid season. A sure sign of the growing stature of the Club was evident when new players were able to step up to the top squad from the Young Guns to cover such injuries. Players like Shane Tronc and Steve Southern were fine examples of first grade debutantes who replaced injured players and went on to play significant roles in the Club's success of 2004. The finals series proved to be of immense importance to the Club and the North Queensland community.