Michael Morgan put on a masterclass to lead the North Queensland Cowboys to a 16-point victory over the Canterbury Bulldogs in the opening game of Round 10 at ANZ Stadium.
The Cowboys got away to a fast start after surviving an early onslaught, with Morgan hitting form and Lachlan Coote making his return from injury at the back.
While Morgan was man of the match, it was a strong team effort across the board as they ran in an 18-0 lead during the first half, then extended it to 24 before the Bulldogs got on the board.
Canterbury did look like they were going to start the game strongly, and spent much of the first ten minutes applying pressure, but a baffling no try call on an obstruction saw the Cowboys gain momentum and never let it up for the remainder of the first half.
The Bulldogs simply struggled all game long with their fifth tackle options, looking lost on attack and simply unable to break the Cowboys line. Matt Frawley didn’t get anywhere near involved enough in the game, while Moses Mbye struggled.
The Cowboys got the scoring underway in the seventh minute of the game through Kyle Feldt. Morgan chipped over the top of the compressed defensive line, and Feldt beat a chasing Brett Morris with absolute ease to score the opener.
Morgan himself scored the second, taking on the line and dummying to a supporting Ethan Lowe, before beating David Klemmer. The Bulldogs defence was caught on the line and short, with Morgan scoring almost untouched.
The third and final try of the first half came to Coen Hess, just four minutes from the break. Morgan again provided the kick, aiming at the posts with Hess able to get in and around the defence to plant the ball for a try.
A penalty goal took the lead outside three converted tries on the other side of the halftime break, with the Bulldogs making every error in the book before Coen Hess went over for the opening try of the second half.
Kerrod Holland then got Canterbury on the board with Matt Frawley putting in a lovely grubber that Coote simply couldn’t control.
The Cowboys then spent plenty of time on their own line, giving away countless penalties before Ray Thompson was sent to the sin bin, leaving them with 12 men.
Despite the Bulldogs looking for all the world like they weren’t going to score, Holland scoring his second try from a Brenko Lee offload, who was among one of the best for Des Hasler’s side this evening.
Danny Fualalo would then score in the following set as Canterbury went the length of the field, sparking their claim for a comeback. An error immediately after the try though allowed North Queensland back onto the attack, with Ben Spina icing the game under the posts with the final try.
The Cowboys then, picking up an important win over the Bulldogs.
Canterbury Bulldogs 14
North Queensland Cowboys 30
William Dalton Davis
Roar Rookie
Who's going to take 4th tackle hit ups in the red zone when James Graham leaves?
Nanco
Guest
What was the crowd - it wasn't listed on the NRL site and was lucky if it was 10K even given Sydney NRL inflation index. It was however 4K more than the Tigers crowd tonight
steveng
Roar Rookie
All the luck went NQ way, that's how it goes in some games and NQ had it last night. The Dogs tried very hard but their options were very poor and the Cows defence was outstanding, that's what won them the game.
The Barry
Roar Guru
Interesting take on Klemmer. His missed tackle on Morgan was poor but I thought his running game was solid. What do you mean by threatening? He doesn't look like making a line break or scoring tries but he runs hard every time and makes good metres post contact..isn't that what you want from your props? He's 4th in the NRL for run metres for a forward, albeit with an extra game under his belt now. I know you mentioned his metres but you also seemed to discount them. I would have thought they were the best indicator of a props performance. He's been one of the few consistent performers for the dogs.
Rob
Guest
This is hard but I think Barry is right to question the no try ruling. It's frustrating to watch the interpretation constantly being different. It's a Try for me because the numbers were there for the Dogs and the ball was well past Jackson. Players made defensive decisions and Thompson can't tackle 2 players. I also thought Hampton pushing forward in an offside position. Being within 10m of the opossition player trying to pick up the ball creates pressure. The Cowboys should of recieved a penalty for Linnett being taken out in the Winterstien no try. Scrum feed to the Dogs when Spina fumbled a lost ball? The Bulldogs player lost the ball in the collision of being tackled. Saying it went backwards is really pushing the envelope in that area of the game. Drop the ball in the contact it's a turn over. That descission was followed by numerous knit picking penalties and a sin bin to even up the scoreboard in my opinion. Chechin was getting disrespect from some players because he was being bais and inconsistent late in the contest to make the game interesting.
Larry1950
Guest
If ever a score flattered the losing side, last night's made bulldog supporters think their team had a crack. But for a few pedantic pocket referee calls to get the dogs a few extra sets, and the bunker clearly getting the hold-back wrong, the Bulldogs would have probably been lucky to score nil. Not a cowboy supporter but really starting to believe they get screwed by officials when playing in Sydney. Another pet hate from nearly every game, when are the refs going to ping guys who roll over then rise to play the ball, putting the markers offside in an illegal manner. Make them play the ball from where they hit the ground, every team now seems to be fudging sideways or along the ground a metre forward. Jack of those penalties which aren't the fault of defenders.
Joe
Roar Rookie
Good summary of the game. The Dogs attack apart from that short spell where they put on two tries was very poor. I don't think Mybe is justifying his salary at the moment. Frawley was ok in patches but the kicking game wasn't very good as well as the last play options. Also I'm not too sure that Des's tactic of using Klemmer at 13 is paying off. He missed that easy tackle for Morgans first try because he looked exhausted. I think he might be better off going back to prop and bringing in a tackle machine at 13. Sam K hasn't captured that form from his first game...seems to be trying to hard with his playmaking sometimes when really he already does a great job just running straight and hard. I really wasn't expecting a performance like this from the Cowboys even with Granville and Coote back but they really make a big difference and Morgan played his best game all year. Reminds me of several other QLD players who always seem to find form just before Origin. : ) They really needed a performance like that from him with JT likely out for another couple of games.
kk
Roar Pro
Twenty minutes into the game and for the first time ever I turned off a game of Rugby League. It was more stressful than the previous sixty hours at the CCU. Perhaps the English Language is ready for a new word to describe a human condition of despair... "joshless"
Judge Holden
Roar Guru
Do I think Thurston is better than Langer? Yes I do. I might be biased as a Cowboys supporter and the fact I only really remember Langer during his twilight years. Both are legends in their own right and one could make the case that Langer was more successful, in terms of premierships.
souvalis
Guest
Dessie's really revved his side up for the remainder of the season..official announcing of the Woods signing lets the entire pack know they're on borrowed time and deemed inferior to the long haired one..if the must make the 8 clause was re inserted in his contract Des would be well aware of what his 17 are going thru..and his bag would be 1/2 packed..
The Barry
Roar Guru
Happy with that...
ferret
Guest
Josh Morris in particular is a habitual turf-humper. Always thrashing around and diving forward to get a penalty (BTW - got one of the three in a row that got Thompson sent.). Didn't help much as the Dogs are bereft of attack. First try from Coote fumble and then 2 against 12 men and a ton of possession. Start planning for 2018 Dessie!
Griffo
Guest
Probably his team mates who call him Ivan Drago think so.
Griffo
Guest
My impression of the first one is that despite the contact being minimal he also got tripped up (accidentally), and you don't need a lot of contact in a trip to go down. My impression of the second one (and it was hard to tell because it was long range camera shot) was that he got a forearm to the head. The footage of him spitting blood seems to support this or contact of a similar magnitude.
andrew
Guest
Morgan had a good game - he needed to - but I think the "4 try assists and 1 try" line flatter him a bit. A lot of those grubbers were kicks that didn't make the in goal and were muffed by bulldogs players or took deflections. He got a bit lucky, he probably deserved to have some luck and was probably man of the match, but I thought the praise for him was a little over the top. At the other end, Klemmer must be doubtful for Origin?! I am sure he has good metre numbers but he doesn't look threatening or imposing at all. People bag Woods out all the time because he isn't the agro style forward, but (injury aside) he is offering a heck of a lot more than Klemmer right now.
andrew
Guest
I like Coote and he is a good player. His problem is when he makes one mistake you can almost guarantee he will make a second - probably by trying too hard to make a mends. He muffed that grubber which the Dogs scored off, then the next kick - with the second kick out of the air by Morris, he attacked the ball in the air and gave the Dogs another set, when the better play was to probably let Morris catch it and wrap him up (given there were other team mates around him).
Rob
Guest
Yep, But be carefull JT is a God. Smith, Cronk, Lockyer are great blokes to have running your team. Inglis, Bowen and Slater are also probably good blokes to follow and throw a dumby too. Do you think he is better than Langer?
steveng
Roar Rookie
NQ defence and options beat the Dogs all night. The Dogs looked good for the first 10 min after that they flopped into their usual ordinary unproductive options that had no affect on NQ. NQ were a bit lucky with the bounce of the ball but you make your own luck.
Rob
Guest
Coote at fullback brings a much needed strong long kicking game to the Cowboys. Thurston and Morgan are very good at the short game but need the extra option in general field kicking. Smith does a similar thing complementing Cronk. Ponga is 19 and hasn't been given a kicking liscence when he has had played. Coote is error riddled if you look hard at his game and Ponga is much safer under pressure with a frightingly good running and passing game which is way better than Coote's. Would much rather Ponga for the next 5 years than Coote. I think Granville has been at the heart of the Cowboys success. Without Granville the Cowboys don't WIN the 2015 GF. He was my pick for the Churchill medal, and some of the MOM awards they have given to Thurston in recent times. Bulldogs didn't play well and the Cowboys got some cheap points with a better attitude in D and A. Reynolds not playing had a big impact on the result. How Moylan gets a start in SOO ahead of J. Reynold is comical NSW.
up in the north
Roar Rookie
I'm not surprised by the win but I didn't think it would be so emphatic. The return of Granville and more importantly, Coote, was just the thing Morgan needed. Young Hess is an absolute beast in the making, I just hope and pray that Cowbies management can look after his development into the future. Once he hits his peak he will be a joy for everybody that loves league. Anyone else think he looks like Dolph Lundgren.