Ham was ruled out of the preliminary final against Maitland on Saturday after receiving two yellow cards in the Two Blues' 34-19 loss to Hamilton in the major semi-final.

The judiciary agreed that the tackle for which he was given a second yellow card was fair. However, under the NHRU by-laws yellow cards for foul play can only be overturned in the case of mistaken identity.

"He is our captain and our leader so he is a massive loss," Beckett said. "Now there is a huge prize for the boys. They can give him another game this year. That is in our minds."

READ MORE: KICK IN THE BUM SPURS BLACKS

Dan Kevill returns from suspension (yellow cards) at lock, allowing Piers Morrell to drop back to No.8. Jack Johnson-Holmes, who would have made way, retains his place on the side of the scrum.

The teenager and younger brother of NSW Waratahs prop Harry, was named the NSW Country Colts player of the year on Sunday and has played a large chunk of the season in the top grade.

"When he first jumped on the scene in round one he was dynamite," Beckett said. "To be honest I was disappointed with him last week. I want more from him. He copped a bit of a spray at half-time and we have had a bit of a chat this week. I expect him to be bouncing around on Saturday and do his job."

The major semi-final defeat to Hamilton hit the Two Blues hard. After trailing 24-7, they rallied to get back in the game at 24-19 before losing Ham late.

"We have dealt with disappointments this year," Beckett said. "It is part of the journey for these guys. They tend to learn from it. Every time we have been knocked down they have picked themselves up.

"Our strength has been that we are a pretty tight group. We also know that individually there is some brilliance there. Big games can sometimes create a moment that you have to take. We didn't create enough of those last week which was disappointing. We get another crack this week."

READ MORE: BARKER OUT TO FINISH SEASON ON HIGH