He's asked about the prospect of another JT carrying the Cowboys and the town of Townsville, riding his broad shoulders all the way to another NRL finals appearance. Happens almost every year. Only this time his last name is Taumalolo, not Thurston.

"I remember signing down here and saying, 'one thing I'm happy not to have to do is go against big Jase [Taumalolo, in training]'," said Penrith big bopper Tamou, who is finally finding his feet at the foot of the mountains.

"I don't know [how to describe him] ... he's just a big powerful thing with feet. He's a weapon in the game of rugby league. With us it starts with him and we're definitely going to have our hands full defensively.

"He's still a little kid and he's out [on the training field] first chipping with his kick chases. You just see the power he has. I don't think he actually knows how strong he is. We all know he throws the weights around in the gym. You get in front of him and you'll feel it."

The Panthers have been feeling the pinch all year, but perhaps not as much as Tamou's old buddies who have squeezed every last ounce out of a team missing Thurston and Matt Scott almost all year and riding on the back of Taumalolo, signed to the longest contract in NRL history and a 10-year deal from 2018.

Yet their finals fate could hang in the balance with a loss against the rejuvenated Panthers, who are chasing a sixth consecutive win at Pepper Stadium on Saturday night.

It would mean Anthony Griffin's men leapfrog the Cowboys in the bottom-half of the eight and inch closer to a finals berth, which has been more improbable than impossible after a bumbling start to the year. And none felt it more than big-money recruit Tamou.

"At the start of the year, it was very difficult," Tamou said. "We're a completely different team now from back then. It's good in a way and maybe a silver lining.

"Obviously I'm quite happy with the work I'm doing for the team and winning [games] this past month. I definitely know there's improvement and I know I can do a lot better.

"Now it's not do or die, but we need to win. A win is crucial for us."

The Panthers will give skipper Matt Moylan (hamstring) until Friday's captain's run to prove his fitness - he was restricted to light duties on Wednesday - for a match where he could line up opposite mid-season departure Te Maire Martin, who has thrived in the tropics since being released by Penrith.

On Moylan, Tamou said: "Obviously we need everything and everyone we can. Every game is crucial now and we need those two points and we're in a bunched area where teams are still vying for a spot.

"To have him will be good. But in saying that Tyrone May has been unreal for us."