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Kevin Walters has described his team’s first defeat of the season as a ‘punch in the face’ and said that his team need to learn to fight back better in the future.
“We were in the game at different stages, but over the full 80 (minutes) they were better than us,” said the Broncos coach.
“Every little thing that we tried didn’t come off for us. We got punched in the face today. We’ve got to respect that punch and get our dukes up ready for next week.”
North Queensland brought Brisbane back down to earth with a bump after their young guns fired them to a crushing 38-12 victory in the Queensland derby at Suncorp Stadium.
Jeremiah Nanai and Griffin Neame, with a combined 11 first grade appearances, stole the headlines with Nanai grabbing a hat trick of tries – all from kicks – and Neame grabbing another.
North Queensland utterly dominated proceedings, with Chad Townsend and Tom Dearden – the latter returning to the club that so willingly discarded him – kicking the Broncos to death and Valentine Holmes and Jason Taumalolo winning their own individual battles with Kotoni Staggs and Payne Haas comphrensively.
Perhaps it should have been expected, given that North Queensland battered the Broncos in a trial just a month ago, but few saw this level of dominance coming.
Cowboys coach Todd Payten called it his team’s “most complete performance” since he got the North Queensland job last season.
“We played tough, defended our way out of trouble in the first half … and that was the game,” said Payten.
For the Broncos, it was a worrying return to last year, with old weaknesses to the fore. In particular, it was their lack of defensive application that will trouble Kevin Walters.
He might have other worries too, with Jake Turpin and Kobe Hetherington both put on report in the first half. Jordan Riki was also taken off with a rib injury early on, as was Cowboys forward Coen Hess, his a shoulder problem.
The strength of the Broncos this year has been their ability to stick in games and give themselves the chance to win: today, they completed at 68%, were outrun by 350m and – astoundingly for a team featuring Adam Reynolds – outkicked by over 200m.
It was one-way traffic from the first moments. The Cowboys had opened the scoring through a Valentine Holmes penalty goal before Jeremiah Nanai crossed to extend the lead.
The bunker made a serious intervention in the 24th minute to get Brisbane on the board. Brisbane had kicked low down the left through Albert Kelly, with the ball deflected into the path of Kurt Capewell.
He hacked on, and Farnworth found himself ahead of Kyle Feldt in the race for the ball. Herbie kicked a third time into the in-goal and was then felled by Feldt from behind.
After an age of deliberation of two different offsides, Farnworth was awarded the try, with the bunker deeming that he was certainly have touched the ball down had he not been touched by Kyle Feldt.
The Cowboys’ strong first half was given the reward it deserved in the 38th minute.
Griffin Neame, in just his fifth game of first grade, was the man to cross the stripe but it was all about Jason Taumalolo, whose soft hands sent the rookie through the gap between Adam Reynolds and Keenan Palasia.
The onslaught continued after the break. Reynolds had a nightmare start to the half, narrowly missing a 40/20 attempt to cede field position and then sending a drop out over the sideline.
It was an opportunity not to be missed. Valentine Holmes, who had rolled back the years in the first half with a swerving run, came up with the kind of putdown that he pioneered in his first stint in the NRL to extend the lead yet further.
More was to follow: Jeremiah Nanai, who so confidently touched down a low kick in the first half, rose above Tesi Niu to snare a bomb and put the game beyond the Broncos. He would complete the hat trick just moments later, again fielding a kick to score.
Tom Dearden, impressive throughout, got his reward with a dummy half dart late on before Herbie Farnworth, the only Bronco to emerge from the game with any credit, got one back before the close.
It was no less than North Queensland deserved.