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The Cowboys are finally back on the winners list, thumping the New Zealand Warriors by 28 points on Saturday night.
» Click here to read the full match report
Final score
Cowboys 34
Warriors 6
The roller coaster that is the New Zealand Warriors cross the ditch to face the roller coaster that is the North Queensland Cowboys. Join The Roar from 7:30pm (AEST) for live scores and coverage.
Both these sides have brilliant attacking potential and have scored well over 450 points this season.
In their history they have played a number of nail-biters mixed with blowouts and there doesn’t seem to be a defined hometown advantage – so it’s hard to tell what we are in for.
North Queensland were motoring along in the top four until a run of three straight losses to the Storm, Tigers and Roosters ruined any thoughts of the double chance. They were convincing losses too, not showing much in attack and being dominated defensively.
Now they sit sixth and if they don’t get their act together, could end the season as low as eighth.
Cowboys fans won’t like to hear it, but the fortunes of their team are well and truly reliant on the strength of Johnathan Thurston’s hamstring. He tweaked it in the loss to the Storm and there is a school of thought that he was brought back too early and isn’t playing at 100 per cent. That, combined with opposition defences getting up at him as quickly as they can, has caused serious problems for the Cowboys’ attacking intentions.
The Warriors all but blew their 2016 chances last week with an abject 80 minutes against South Sydney, going down at home 41-22 and losing touch with the Titans and their only realistic chance of making the finals. Whether this affects their attitude to the game or not, time will tell.
The Kiwi side hasn’t made wholesale changes, with only Bunty Afoa and James Gavet added for the trip across, with Tui Lolohea dropped.
The home side have the key inclusion of try-scoring winger Antonio Winterstein, who replaces an unlucky Javid Bowen. Coen Hess takes the place of John Asiata.
While the battle of superstar halves Thurston and Shaun Johnson will be foremost in everyone’s minds, it is the unsexy match-up of Jason Taumalolo and Simon Mannering that will go a long way to deciding this one. Both are powerful ball runners and their ability to get their hands on the halves and cause mayhem will be critical to the result.
New Zealand have a lot of firepower in Solomone Kata, Thomas Leuluai, Johnson and Manu Vatuvei, but too often this attacking potential is not realised.
Prediction
Believe it or not, the Warriors have won their last two games in Townsville. That trend comes to a shuddering halt tonight as the Cowboys rediscover their attacking mojo. There are just too many weapons for the home team to be kept quiet for a fourth straight week.
Cowboys by 26.
Will the Warriors cause the upset or can the Cowboys get back on track? Join us from 7:30pm (AEST).