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A Michael Morgan masterclass has allowed the North Queensland Cowboys to defy the odds for a second straight week, winning their semi-final by eight points against the Parramatta Eels at ANZ Stadium.
» Click here to read the full match report
Final score
Parramatta Eels 16
North Queensland Cowboys 24
The North Queensland Cowboys were never supposed to make it this far, but they will be full of confidence for a tough trip to Homebush to face the Parramatta Eels. Join The Roar for live scores and coverage of the NRL semi-finals from 7:40pm (AEST).
The Cowboys spent the second half of the season proving everyone wrong without Matt Scott and Johnathan Thurston, before desperately clinging onto eighth spot on the table.
They looked out of sorts and simply making up the numbers as September arrived, and an elimination final against reigning premiers Cronulla was viewed as a bridge too far for the men from Townsville. It proved to be anything but though, as they kept their season alive for another week with a gritty 15-14 extra-time victory.
North Queensland had to fight for the full 90 minutes, coming from behind to force extra time, before gun half Michael Morgan iced the game with a field goal.
It’s the grit and determination that just might get the Cowboys over the line against the odds again. Morgan has stood up wonderfully in the last six weeks, while Jason Taumalolo, who ran for 252 metres last week, will have to lead from the front.
Standing at the other end of the park is Eels lock Nathan Brown. He has led the engine room all year, but will have his work cut out for him this time around.
The Eels, who surged at the end of the season to finish in the top four, showed more of that form last week, as they went down by two points to the premiership favourites, Melbourne.
Parramatta played a fantastic first half to go into the sheds ahead 10-4. From there though, they imploded, dropping a lot of ball and letting the Storm back into the match.
Brad Arthur’s men are expected to win at home, but their defence will need to be good. The Sharks dropped a lot of ball against the Cowboys last week, but their defence kept them in it.
The Cowboys pressurised defence caused a lot of those errors. Their line speed at times was phenomenal, and they shouldn’t have quite as many problems cracking the Eels’ line.
Prediction
If the Cowboys can defend as they did last week, Parra may not be up for it, with less finals experience in the last 20.
We all wrote the Cowboys off last week, and I refuse to make the same mistake.
Cowboys by 1.
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