Week 1 Semi Final 3 Donkeys v Cows

DONKEYS V COWBOYS - SAT 12 SEPTEMBER, 7.55PM, SUNCORP STADIUM | BUY TICKETS

Donkeys
1 Darius Boyd
2 Corey Oates
3 Jack Reed
4 Justin Hodges (c)
5 Jordan Kahu
6 Anthony Milford
7 Ben Hunt
8 Sam Thaiday
9 Andrew McCullough
10 Adam Blair
11 Alex Glenn
12 Matt Gillett
13 Corey Parker

Interchange
14 Jarrod Wallace
15 Mitchell Dodds
16 Joe Ofahengaue
17 Kodi Nikorima

Coach: Wayne Bennett

Cowboys
1 Lachlan Coote
2 Kyle Feldt
3 Justin O'Neill
4 Kane Linnett
5 Antonio Winterstein
6 Michael Morgan
7 Johnathan Thurston (c)
8 Matthew Scott (c)
9 Jake Granville
10 James Tamou
11 Gavin Cooper
12 Ethan Lowe
13 Jason Taumalolo

Interchange
14 Rory Kostjasyn
15 John Asiata
16 Scott Bolton
17 Ben Hannant
18 Ray Thompson
19 Matthew Wright

Coach: Paul Green

Ended up getting tickets to this one. Heading up with my brother and his son who are Cowboys fans who I am slowly converting to Full Titans members and a couple of mates from work who again are cowboys fans but I'm stockpiling Titans baby jumpsuits for his unborn child to fit from newborn through to 12 months. Changing one misguided person at a time.

Donkeys v Cowboys Qualifying Final preview
Suncorp Stadium Saturday, 7.55pm

http://www.nrl.com

The Queensland derby never fails to excite fans from across the state and the mouth-watering qualifying final between the second-placed Donkeys and third-placed Cowboys will be no exception.

From Tweed Heads to the Torres Strait and everywhere in between, all eyes will be fixed on what is sure to be another glorious chapter in an interstate rivalry that's been simmering away for 21 seasons.

There have been some tight tussles and occasional floggings handed down over the years, but Saturday night's Suncorp Stadium blockbuster is arguably the most importance clash between these sides since the Cowboys entered the competition in 1995.

The equation is simple: the winner gets a week off and only needs to win one more home game to make the grand final, while the loser will walk a finals tightrope in order to make it to the decider in the first weekend of October.

If the Cowboys want to be that winner they'll have to start correcting their trend of conceding the first try in games.

The Cowboys have been notorious slow starters in 2015 and have conceded the first try in 15 of their 24 games, including their last six matches to end the regular season.

The NRL's comeback kings have managed to win 10 out of those 15 games when falling behind, but handing such a start to the Donkeys on their home turf is ill-advised.

Cowboy's coach Paul Green will emphasise the importance of a fast start against Brisbane, with the Donkeys winning 15 out of 17 games this season when they've scored the opening try.

The form of both teams heading into the finals has been mixed – both have won two out of their last four games – although Donkeys wins have come against teams inside the top eight (the Dragons and Rabbitohs), while the Cowboys' wins have been against the 13th-placed Warriors and 14th-placed Titans.

In team changes, the Donkeys welcome back halfback Ben Hunt (corked thigh) and Alex Glenn (suspension), while Jordan Kahu replaces Lachlan Maranta on the wing.

Michael Morgan returns from an ankle injury for the Cowboys and slots straight in at five-eighth with Ray Thompson dropping to six-man bench.

Watch out Donkeys: Forget Johnathan Thurston, Lachlan Coote or Michael Morgan for a moment because ex-Donkeys Jake Granville shapes as a real x-factor for the Cowboys in September. The 26-year-old has been a revelation for the Cowboys since linking up with his former Wynnum Manly Seagulls coach Paul Green, who he won back-to-back Intrust Super Cup titles with in 2011 and 2012. The Rockhampton-born rake has played in every one of North Queensland's 24 games this season and saved his best performance of the year for last weekend when he tore the Titans to shreds. Granville scored a try, made a line break and laid on two try assists in an inspired display against the Titans and will be looking to repeat that dose against his former club, with the Cowboys No.9 averaging just under seven runs from dummy-half per game this season.

Watch out Cowboys: Once again let's look beyond the obvious threat that Donkeys pose with halves Anthony Milford and Ben Hunt and focus on someone with 24 games of finals experience – Corey Parker. Donkeys workhorse had a storming game against an out-of-sorts Cowboys at Suncorp Stadium in Round 3, making 188 metres from 22 carries, 24 tackles, three offloads, one line break, a try assist, and crossing for a try of his own while kicking six goals from eight attempts. Another performance similar to his exploits from earlier in the season is needed to lift the relatively inexperienced Donkeys towards a potential home preliminary final in a fortnight's time.

Key Match-Up: Matt Gillett v Gavin Cooper. It's hard to preview any game the Cowboys are involved in without talking about Johnathan Thurston. However, being a 13-man game 'JT' can't do it all on his own and behind every good playmaker there's an even better back rower willing to protect his side's star player. With their partnership evoking memories of Tonie Carroll and Darren Lockyer, it's in attack where this pair shines the brightest. Cooper has made 160 decoy runs this season – the most out of both sides and two more than fellow back rower Ethan Lowe – and it's these runs which will have the Donkeys' right-edge defenders in two minds, especially with Thurston lurking in and around Cooper as he usually likes to do. Origin forward Matt Gilllet will be tasked with containing Cooper and company on Saturday night. Gillett is a big-game player and is sure to rise to the occasion against the Cowboys after Donkeys right edge was exposed during last weekend's loss to the Storm. Rookie Ash Taylor was defending between Gillett and Hodges before he came off injured, although the return of Ben Hunt this weekend should help with defensive cohesion on that side of the field.

The History: Played 41; Donkeys 28, Cowboys 11, Drawn 2. These sides have met twice already this season with Donkeys winning by 22 points in Round 3, while the Cowboys won by half that margin in Round 10. Donkeys has won three consecutive matches against the Cowboys at Suncorp Stadium with their last loss coming in Round 2, 2012 courtesy of a 79th-minute Matt Bowen try. Clashes at Suncorp Stadium have been tight in recent years with six out of the past seven games decided by six points or less, with the Donkeys victorious on five occasions.

Did You Know: Cowboys coach Paul Green has played with and against current Donkeys Justin Hodges, Corey Parker and Sam Thaiday. Best known as Cronulla's halfback for five seasons during the 1990s, Green joined the Cowboys and the Roosters for two seasons each before playing one year with Parramatta and ending his career in 2004 with the Broncos. Green played five games for the Donkeys under Wayne Bennett has coached against his former mentor on four occasions (for two wins) since making his NRL coaching debut last year.

What Are The Odds: Sportsbet punters are keen on the juicy price on offer for the Cowboys in head-to-head betting, with 60 per cent more money invested on the visitors. Donkeys 1-12 ($3) is still the most popular winning margin, while Corey Oates ($9.50) has been the best backed to score the opening try. Latest odds at Sportsbet.com.au.

Match Officials: Lead Referee: Gerard Sutton; Assistant Referee: Gavin Badger; Touch Judges: Brett Suttor and Michael Wise; Video Referees: Steve Chiddy and Luke Patten.

Televised: Channel Nine, 7.30pm.

The Way We See It: Home ground advantage is a huge factor in the Queensland derby with the past five games played between these sides won by the home team. There have been three finals played between these sides (all in Townsville) with the Cowboys winning all of those matches. As mentioned above, a fast start is crucial because playing catch-up in finals football is a much harder task to achieve than during the regular season. It'll be a tough slog for the winner, but with 50,000 fans cheering them on the Donkeys should prove just a little too good for their Queensland cousins. Donkeys by 8.

Donkeys v Cowboys: The final word

Tony Webeck Sat 12 Sep, 2015, 8:00am
By Tony Webeck*, Chief Queensland Correspondent, NRL.com


The coaches give their squads a clean bill of health, Wayne Bennett reflects on an historic night in Townsville and Paul Green gives his thoughts on where Brisbane have improved this season.


Donkeys coach Wayne Bennet on..

Going into camp on match eve: "There's no advantage, it is just to remind us we have a pretty big game ahead of us. If you sit at home it feels like another club game and it is much more than that. It is a case of getting the guys together and making sure everyone is around each other. Twenty four hours of that is all we need."

The first Donkeys-Cowboys final in 2004: "We made that happen for them when we went to Townsville. We could have gone to Sydney and we made a choice to go to Townsville because we value the game and no one would have watched the game in Sydney. It was a pretty special night up there. Shane Webcke got an operation the Sunday morning (after a Saturday night game against Melbourne) and went up there, it was probably the most courageous thing I have seen in the game. He played six days later (after surgery), no one could believe he could do what he did. Ben Ikin was playing in the state league because he was close to retiring and we ended up taking him up as hooker. I thought that night we were as brave as we ever were."

Former Donkeys assistant Paul Green's development as a coach: "He's done a good job. I always thought he had the makings of a good coach. I think the best thing that he did for himself was spend a couple of years at Wynnum. I only coached him a couple of times for Queensland and in a few games for the Broncos but he was always a smart player, switched on and doing his best."



Cowboys coach Paul Green on...

The difference in the Donkeys 12 months on: "They're probably a little bit more potent attacking-wise. They've always competed well, that's been a trademark of Broncos teams and in particular Wayne Bennett teams. It's going to need an 80-minute performance for us to get the result but there are probably a few more attacking weapons there."

Whether his halves will be fit enough to kick: "I got asked a similar question about that and my answer to that was that anyone who is in the team will be expected to do their job and I'm sure they will be doing their job. Part of their roles in the team is obviously to kick the footy so they'll be doing that."

Concerns over his team's slow starts: "Teams have scored first on us recently but when you look closely at how we've actually played at the start of the game I thought we'd started pretty well. We probably just need to be a little more desperate when we're down on our own try line early in games. I don't think for a while now we've put our whole game together. Even on the weekend we played well against the Titans but we let them score first. The Donkeys have probably been in better form particularly against teams higher on the ladder than us and in big games you need to put all parts of your game together."



Injury updates: A final decision on whether Michael Morgan takes his place for the Cowboys will be made on Saturday morning in the wake of the team's final training session on Friday afternoon. Donkeys lock forward Corey Parker completed the entire captain's run at Suncorp Stadium on Friday morning as did Alex Glenn, who was in doubt earlier in the week with a foot injury. Cowboys superstar Johnathan Thurston has overcome a minor groin strain and trained fully on both Thursday and Friday.

Market moves: As soon as Michael Morgan was named, the dollars came rolling in for the Cowboys. Brisbane have drifted from $1.53 out to $1.71 while the Cowboys have firmed from $2.50 into $2.20. Fifty per cent more money has been wagered on the Cowboys in head-to-head betting compared to the Donkeys. Donkeys winger Corey Oates has easily been the best backed player to score the first try – in fact he's carrying three times as much money as Jordan Kahu, who's the next most popular pick. Latest odds at Sportsbet.com.au.

I might havta get an early start with the drinkin' this arvo, as I struggle to watch a Donkies game at the best of times.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Toads

I might havta get an early start with the drinkin' this arvo, as I struggle to watch a Donkies game at the best of times.

---

I can cheer for anyone (except Melbourne) who plays against the Donkeys & the beer is Cold :drinkies:

What a game that was. Wouldn't complain if both of them meet again in the big one.

Cracking game of footy , brilliant defense from both sides

Looks good, was a massive crowd!

http://resources0.news.com.au/images...5dafb8ee5a.jpg

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by DIEHARD

Looks good, was a massive crowd!

http://resources0.news.com.au/images...5dafb8ee5a.jpg

---

50K

Donkeys v Cowboys: Five key points

Tony Webeck Sat 12 Sep, 2015, 10:28pm
By Tony Webeck*, Chief Queensland Correspondent, NRL.com

What we learned from the Donkeys win over North Queensland in a classic finals contest at Suncorp Stadium on Sunday.


There's always a place for the super sub

Donkeys hooker Andrew McCullough made 37 tackles in the first half so had well and truly earned a spell but the longer the game went the more likely it appeared his back-up Kodi Nikorima would be the understudy left waiting backstage.

But with his first touch in the 64th minute Nikorima blasted out of the blocks from dummy-half to split the Cowboys defence and when he looked to his left 30 metres from the Cowboys try-line it was another man of diminutive stature in Anthony Milford waiting for just such an opening.

North Queesland No.9 Jake Granville had been worked into the ground with a heavy defensive workload in the first half so when Wayne Bennett played his trump card the opposition had nothing left up their sleeve.

"You could say I was a genius," joked Donkeys coach Wayne Bennett.

"It just reminds you again of what a fresh body can do. When he came onto the ground they'd been plying their hearts out for 60 minutes. It's like running half a marathon and someone says you've got the last two kays to run. You're always going to look good but he was wonderful and got the job done for us."



Donkeys' unbreakable wall built on pure will

One tackle summed up the Donkeys' defensive efforts that have been evident ever since South Sydney handed them a touch-up in Round 1. Johnathan Thurston went to the line as the Cowboys again pressed deep in the Donkeys territory and put Ethan Lowe through a hole that against almost any other team would have resulted in a try to the right of the posts. But then came Corey Parker with a desperate off-balance hit that not only stopped Lowe in his tracks but jolted the ball free from his grasp.

For most of the first half the Cowboys started their sets in good field position but the closer they got to the try-line the more impenetrable the Donkeys defence appeared to be. Justin O'Neill was held up over the line, Kyle Feldt was bumped enough to spill a chance in the corner and not until the Donkeys made an error 25 metres out from their line could the Cowboys find a way through. Coaches talk a lot about defensive systems and structures but they all require desire to function effectively.

"It's been strong for us all season and it held up again tonight," Parker told Channel Nine.

"These guys are as good as anyone that I've had because they have a belief and a trust in each other and they don't want to let each other down and that's what you see out there," said Bennett.

"It's not that they have a magical defensive system or anything else, these guys just bought into it."

Points at a premium at finals time

With a total of three points deciding the first two matches of the NRL Finals Series it was perhaps little surprise that the Donkeys would choose to take a gift two points on offer in the ninth minute following a penalty 12 metres out.

Alex Glenn earned his team the penalty with Corey Parker giving his hamstring a light workout with a simple goal from beside the posts and a 2-0 lead.

Despite trailing by eight points the Cowboys took the chance to reduce the deficit by converting a penalty goal in the 34th minute after Ethan Lowe spilled a try-scoring chance close to the line.

To close out the first half Ben Hunt took a shot at field goal from beyond the 30-metre line just in case that was all that separated them through 80 minutes. Then, with his team trailing by two but on a roll in the 54th minute Thurston rolled the dice by turning down a penalty shot at goal and come unstuck when Gavin Cooper spilled the ball a metre out from the try-line. When the Donkeys got their chance to extend their lead with 20 minutes to play, Parker bounced one in off the upright for a 10-6 advantage.

In the end it was just two tries apiece with Parker's two penalty goals proving the difference.

Halfback masterclass on both sides

They are vastly different in shape and style but the influence of both Ben Hunt and Johnathan Thurston was a masterclass for any young footballer with designs on wearing the No.7 jersey.

Hunt's vision opened up an opportunity on the left early in the first half before Thurston countered with a shift to the right at the other end that saw Justin O'Neill held up over the try-line. Thurston's tenaciousness saw him leading the way on his own kick-chase while Hunt's bravery in defence was evident by strong tackles on the likes of Gavin Cooper and Jason Taumalolo.

After a torrid opening 25 minutes Hunt broke the game wide open by exposing a tired Cowboys defence for a 30-metre solo special with a show-and-go 'JT' himself would have been proud of. When Corey Oates made an error early in the second half 25 metres out Thurston pounced on the next play, releasing Lachlan Coote on the left who sent Antonio Winterstein on a path to the try-line. With his team down by 10 points with time running out it was Thurston pushing through on a speculative Justin O'Neill kick with his conversion from wide out bringing his team back within range with nine minutes left.

"He's grown all year and he's one of the reasons why we're where we are," said Bennett.

"He was my biggest project when I came back. I realised that we had to get him on song about things in the game that win for you as opposed to things that lose for you. He had a lot of traits on the other side of the board.

"To his credit he's bought into it all and he's a changed player and we can see the wonderful things that he brings for us."

A Queensland rivalry to savour

Any periods of success either of these teams have enjoyed over the past decade have been largely mutually exclusive but right now Queensland boasts a rivalry the equal of any in the competition. Two of the most dominant teams of the season enthralled more than 50,000 fans at Suncorp Stadium on Saturday night with the result in the balance until the very final minute. Eleven years since North Queensland struck a blow for little brothers everywhere, the Donkeys emerged from a four-year slumber to hand junior a not-so-subtle reminder that they are not willing to be superceded just yet.

In the build-up Sam Thaiday said the Cowboys had assumed the No.1 Maroon mantle while Wayne Bennett said he cared little for such comparisons. There's still the chance these two teams can meet on Grand Final day and if they do it will be another contest to savour.

"That's one of the best games I've ever been a part of," Ben Hunt said.

Cowboys heed lessons in finals footy

Tony Webeck Sun 13 Sep, 2015, 7:00am
By Tony Webeck*, Chief Queensland Correspondent, NRL.com

They have been the comeback kings of the 2015 NRL Telstra Premiership but Cowboys coach Paul Green said his team were given a lesson in the small margins in which finals matches are decided against the Cowboys heed lessons in finals footy

http://www.nrl.com/Portals/NRL/Image...webeck-120.jpg

Sun 13 Sep, 2015, 7:00am By Tony Webeck*, Chief Queensland Correspondent, NRL.com

<iframe src="http://www.facebook.com/plugins/like.php?href=http://www.nrl.com%2fcowboys-heed-lessons-in-finals-footy%2ftabid%2f10874%2fnewsid%2f89761%2fdefault.a spx&send=false&layout=button_count&width=90&show_f aces=false&font&colorscheme=light&action=like&heig ht=21" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowtransparency="true" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border-style: none; outline: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; overflow: hidden; width: 90px; height: 21px;"></iframe>
<iframe id="twitter-widget-0" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowtransparency="true" class="twitter-share-button twitter-share-button-rendered twitter-tweet-button" title="Twitter Tweet Button" src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets/tweet_button.8d007ddfc184e6776be76fe9e5e52d69.en.h tml#_=1442093478743&count=horizontal&dnt=false&id= twitter-widget-0&lang=en&original_referer=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nrl.co m%2Fcowboys-heed-lessons-in-finals-footy%2Ftabid%2F10874%2Fnewsid%2F89761%2Fdefault.a spx&size=m&text=Cowboys%20heed%20lessons%20in%20fi nals%20footy%20-%20NRL.com&type=share&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nrl.com %2Fcowboys-heed-lessons-in-finals-footy%2Ftabid%2F10874%2Fnewsid%2F89761%2Fdefault.a spx" data-url="http://www.nrl.com/cowboys-heed-lessons-in-finals-footy/tabid/10874/newsid/89761/default.aspx" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border-width: 0px; outline: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; position: static; visibility: visible; width: 77px; height: 20px;"></iframe>
<iframe frameborder="0" hspace="0" marginheight="0" margin="" style="width: 0px" scrolling="no" tabindex="0" vspace="0" width="100%" id="I0_1442093476457" name="I0_1442093476457" src="https://apis.google.com/u/0/se/0/_/+1/fastbutton?usegapi=1&size=medium&origin=http%3A%2F %2Fwww.nrl.com&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nrl.com%2Fcowb oys-heed-lessons-in-finals-footy%2Ftabid%2F10874%2Fnewsid%2F89761%2Fdefault.a spx&gsrc=3p&jsh=m%3B%2F_%2Fscs%2Fapps-static%2F_%2Fjs%2Fk%3Doz.gapi.en.JZCw1sZyr38.O%2Fm %3D__features__%2Fam%3DAQ%2Frt%3Dj%2Fd%3D1%2Ft%3Dz cms%2Frs%3DAGLTcCPXpnvs-h0W-NI7-k0EweaDOLNUHQ#_methods=onPlusOne%2C_ready%2C_close %2C_open%2C_resizeMe%2C_renderstart%2Concircled%2C drefresh%2Cerefresh&id=I0_1442093476457&parent=htt p%3A%2F%2Fwww.nrl.com&pfname=&rpctoken=77429165" data-gapiattached="true" title="+1"></iframe>

EMAIL
PRINT



http://www.nrl.com/image.ashx?src=/P...jpg&cn=620x349




They have been the comeback kings of the 2015 NRL Telstra Premiership but Cowboys coach Paul Green said his team were given a lesson in the small margins in which finals matches are decided against the Donkeys on Saturday night.
The Cowboys dominated territory in the first half in particular and enjoyed 53 per cent of possession for the entire game but were left to rue two missed opportunities in the first half in the wake of their 16-12 defeat.
Ethan Lowe had the ball jolted free by a desperate Corey Parker tackle when he appeared certain to score late in the first half before winger Kyle Feldt failed to get the ball down inside the corner post on one of the rare occasions he got outside the steely Donkeys defence.
For 26 weeks of the year they may not prove to be costly but Green said it was all there was between a direct path to the preliminary finals and having to back up next week in sudden-death.
"We got a taste of what big-game footy is like," Green said post-game.
"It's been a while since we've been in that pressure-cooker type game. We've played some good sides but we probably weren't at our best on those occasions.
"We dead-set bombed two tries in the first half and in a tight game against quality opposition, if you bomb a couple of opportunities like that and still get away with a win you're very lucky.
"Tonight there was only four points in it and that could have been the difference. Our execution was only just off but just off is enough to get beaten in a game like that."

FW1: Sat 12 Sep 2015, 7:55pm, Suncorp Stadium

#NRLFinals

16

FULL TIME

12

WATCH HIGHLIGHTSPLAYER STATSTIPPING




Despite being unable to crack the seemingly impregnable Donkeys defence until six minutes into the second half, Cowboys co-captain Matthew Scott said the disappointment of their bombed chances didn't set in until they tried to come to terms with their defeat.
"We're frustrated more now than we were in the game," Scott said.
"Our attitude was pretty good on the back of those errors. We know we can score points when we execute well and we knew there was plenty of time left in the game.
"The Donkeys defended really well, they always do, so unfortunately we couldn't make up for those two tries but I thought we reacted well off the back of it."
While acknowledging that hooker Jake Granville was down on what he has produced throughout the season and that Michael Morgan would be better next week after his first game in three weeks, Green praised his players for the way they fought until the very last play of the game.
"The first thing I said to the boys after the game was that I was very proud of their effort. In the tough parts of the game I thought we competed very well," Green said.
"That was a high quality match with two very good teams but I did say to them that we were just off.
"They had to play very well to beat us, there was four points in it and we blew two tries in the first half.
"We were only just off but in a big game like that if you are just off generally you don't win.

After all that, it was a cracking game like Pete & MT mentioned. A couple of dodgy calls/oversights from the refs that favoured the Donkies, but apart from that, it probably has been the match of the season.

It's damn unfortunate Granville didn't get more game time, as I tend to think if he was there for more than what he was, he could've tipped the game towards the Cows coming out with the win.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Toads

It's damn unfortunate Granville didn't get more game time, as I tend to think if he was there for more than what he was, he could've tipped the game towards the Cows coming out with the win.

---

Was there something wrong with him? I might have missed the commentators mention it but I was really surprised he was on the bench for so long as I thought he was one of the Cows best week in week out. Certainly better than his interchange replacement who only really got into the team when Morgan got injured.