IN every tackle, in every run and every moment of play, Sam Faust will be near the hearts of his former brothers-in-arms.
The North Queensland Cowboys will honour their former player by having their NRL jerseys embroidered with "Sam Faust 184" just below the Cowboys' chest logo.
Faust was the 184th player to play an NRL game for the Cowboys when he made his first-grade debut for the club in 2007.
The special jerseys will be worn by the players for the rest of the 2011 season, starting tonight when the Cowboys take on the Sydney Roosters at Dairy Farmers Stadium.
A minute's silence will also be observed in memory of Faust, who died on Monday after a courageous two-year fight against cancer.
Cowboys players will wear black armbands.
Cowboys CEO Peter Jourdain said the shirt tribute "seemed the most fitting" for a man who will forever have a special place in Cowboys' history.
"We've obviously given a lot of thought to how we can honour Sam the best we can as a club and acknowledge the great contribution he's had to the club," he said.
"Every player gets a number when they play their first game for the Cowboys and it's important to them and to their place in the history of the Cowboys."
Faust's funeral will be held on Monday in his home town at the Proserpine Entertainment Centre at 10.30am.
The service will be attended by the Cowboys' NRL playing roster and coaching staff, including Aaron Payne, one of several players from the current squad to have played alongside Faust. "I think it's very fitting," Payne said of the tribute to Faust.
Payne said those players on the current squad who did not play alongside Faust had also come to know about his champion qualities.
"The guys that knew him know what sort of bloke he was - he was a champion," he said.
"He'll always hold a special place in my heart."
