Brisbane prop Ben Hannant has paid Cronulla captain Paul Gallen the ultimate compliment declaring the Sharks lock "an animal" who is almost indestructible in battle.

Hannant will lock horns with Gallen and Sharks prop Kade Snowden again nine days after they bashed each other during last week's State Of Origin thriller in Brisbane.

Hannant was on the winning side that night.

But he believes Gallen, with Snowden's help can inspire the Sharks to an upset unless Brisbane can find a way to slow him down.

"He (Gallen) is an animal, he's a great player and we're going to have to make sure he's the main guy we slow down," Hannant said when asked if Gallen was the hardest man in the game to stop.

Gallen is the Sharks' heartbeat and the player who puts the spark and energy into the team.

"Gal's definitely a stand out. He leads the way in attack and D (defence)," said Hannant who plays a similar role for Brisbane.

"You just have to look at his stats and he probably does more work than their whole forward pack combined."

Hannant also defended Snowden against stinging criticism for his meagre Origin return of just 46 metres from six hit-ups in just under 40 minutes.

Snowden did make 23 tackles in half a game.

"I think Kade is a quality player.

"He went really well in the Test and they (Cronulla) have got three or four quality front-rowers and we have to make sure we do a job in the middle.

For Brisbane to halt a worrying three-game losing streak they have to secure the middle with a lot more tenacity than they showed against Penrith and Manly who opened them up in the second half of each of their last two NRL games.

"The last two games we've played we've been dominated in the middle of the field," said Hannant.

"We have to go back to what was working for us and make sure we nail that and do the job properly.

Hannant is pleased with the way Brisbane have trained this week believing that can arrest their slide on Friday night in what will be retiring skipper Darren Lockyer's last club game in Sydney.

"Obviously things aren't going to best for the club on the field but I'm excited at the way we've been training and we're ready to turn it around," he said.

Gallen said the match against the Broncos would be a good test for some of the younger members of his squad forced into duty by the absence of several senior forwards.

"It's testing our depth a bit with injuries, with Dougie (Luke Douglas) and Jeremy (Smith) out, a couple of leaders in the forward pack are out, it makes it hard," Gallen said.

"But it gives young blokes an opportunity to show what they can do.

"If they want to be here and play first grade they've got to step up to the mark - it's a good test against Sammy Thaiday and those blokes."

Brisbane prop Ben Hannant has paid Cronulla captain Paul Gallen the ultimate compliment, declaring the Sharks lock "an animal" who is almost indestructible in battle.

Hannant will lock horns with Gallen and Sharks prop Kade Snowden again nine days after they bashed each other during last week's State Of Origin thriller in Brisbane.

Hannant was on the winning side that night.

But he believes Gallen, with Snowden's help, can inspire the Sharks to an upset unless Brisbane can find a way to slow him down.

"He (Gallen) is an animal, he's a great player and we're going to have to make sure he's the main guy we slow down," Hannant said when asked if Gallen was the hardest man in the game to stop.

Gallen is the Sharks' heartbeat and the player who puts the spark and energy into the team.

"Gal's definitely a stand out. He leads the way in attack and D (defence)," said Hannant, who plays a similar role for Brisbane.

"You just have to look at his stats and he probably does more work than their whole forward pack combined."

Hannant also defended Snowden against stinging criticism for his meagre Origin return of just 46 metres from six hit-ups in just under 40 minutes.

Snowden did make 23 tackles in half a game.

"I think Kade is a quality player," Hannant said.

"He went really well in the Test and they (Cronulla) have got three or four quality front-rowers and we have to make sure we do a job in the middle."

For Brisbane to halt a worrying three-game losing streak they have to secure the middle with a lot more tenacity than they showed against Penrith and Manly who opened them up in the second half of each of their last two NRL games.

"The last two games we've played we've been dominated in the middle of the field," said Hannant.

"We have to go back to what was working for us and make sure we nail that and do the job properly."

Hannant is pleased with the way Brisbane have trained this week, believing they can arrest their slide on Friday night in what will be retiring skipper Darren Lockyer's last club game in Sydney.

"Obviously things aren't going the best for the club on the field but I'm excited at the way we've been training and we're ready to turn it around," he said.

Gallen said the match against the Broncos would be a good test for some of the younger members of his squad forced into duty by the absence of several senior forwards.

"It's testing our depth a bit with injuries, with Dougie (Luke Douglas) and Jeremy (Smith) out, a couple of leaders in the forward pack are out, it makes it hard," Gallen said.

"But it gives young blokes an opportunity to show what they can do.

"If they want to be here and play first grade they've got to step up to the mark - it's a good test against Sammy Thaiday and those blokes."

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