Match Centre

The hooter sounds, Low takes the tackle and the referee calls time. It's been an entertaining Saturday night of football, and the Cowboys have overcome a big first hurdle in their premiership campaign.

The Dogs will no-doubt be looking forward to the return of Ben Barba, though Drury Low performed admirably in his absence.

North Queensland Cowboys 24-12

Low tries to grubber ahead for himself but the Cowboys regather and should see out the rest of this game with this possession.

North Queensland Cowboys 24-12

Keating's cross-field kick is batted down by the Dogs, and somehow Gavin Cooper finds himself with the ball. He takes off up-field but the Dogs regather when Low bats down his attempted offload.

North Queensland Cowboys 24-12

Kane Linnett pulls off his second try-saver on Tony Williams, and then Tate gathers the cross-field kick on the opposite side of the field. The Cowboys hang on and will ruck it out from their own 10m line.

North Queensland Cowboys 24-12

PENALTY TO CANTERBURY!

Reynolds chips over the top, and the penalty will go to the Dogs from the 20m line as he was ruled to have been taken out after kicking.

Dogs attacking the line.

North Queensland Cowboys 24-12

Kane Linnett makes a fantastic stop on a rampaging Tony Williams on the line, he loses the ball and Winterstein takes off upfield! He makes it to the Dogs 20m line before being tracked down.

Cowboys attacking the Dogs line.

North Queensland Cowboys 24-12

PENALTY TO CANTERBURY! The Bulldogs put up a towering kick on the right wing, and a penalty is ruled for a chaser being run off the ball. Dogs attack the line.

North Queensland Cowboys 24-12

PENALTY TO CANTERBURY!

The Cowboys are penalised for lying on the tackled player, it looks like Thompson expected a scrum to pack after Graham may have fumbled a bomb on the right wing.

North Queensland Cowboys 24-12

The grubbing kick into the in-goal is too big and with few chasers. The Cowboys let it run dead and will go back on the attack from the 20m tap.

North Queensland Cowboys 24-12

Drury Low makes a huge break down the right! He picked up a loose offload from inside and found himself in plenty of space, pulled down by the efforts of Bowen and Thurston just metres short of the line.

North Queensland Cowboys 24-12

The Cowboys attack the Dogs line and Thurston's flat ball to Tariq Sims is called forward by the referees.

North Queensland Cowboys 24-12

Thurston's grubber into the in-goal is a little too strong, and Drury Low is able to shadow it over the dead-ball line despite Winterstein's best efforts.

North Queensland Cowboys 20-12

PENALTY TO NORTH QUEENSLAND!

The Bulldogs are caught offside and the Cowboys will attack the line.

North Queensland Cowboys 20-12

Looks like superman Thurston proves he's human - he's on his haunches after a blow to the gentlemanly parts.

North Queensland Cowboys 20-12

PENALTY TO NORTH QUEENSLAND!

Tariq Sims loses the ball after a strong run, and the ruling is it's been stripped by Reynolds. Thurston points at the sticks.

North Queensland Cowboys 18-12

Scott Moore drills it into the in-goal from dummy half, Low makes a meal of it and Morris puts it dead. Goal-line dropout and the Cowboys get a repeat set.

North Queensland Cowboys 18-12

Thurston plucks Reynolds' kick out of thin air within his own half, and makes some good ground. Cowboys on the attack.

North Queensland Cowboys 18-12

Thurston dummies, drops the shoulder and goes straight through, offloads and Bowen chips over the top.

Low takes out Bowen, the Bulldogs are trapped in their own in-goal, and Tariq Sims is penalised for being in front of the kicker.

Bulldogs survive and will go on the attack from 30m out from their own line.

North Queensland Cowboys 18-12

Turner puts a kick in from on his wing, Bowen lets it bounce in the ingoal and with Morris racing through that could've had disastrous consequences. Cowboys resume with a 20m tap.

North Queensland Cowboys 18-12

PENALTY TO CANTERBURY!

Low gathers Thurston's grubbing kick into the in-goal area and manages to just escape. The Cowboys are penalised for joining a completed tackle while trying to push him back.

North Queensland Cowboys 18-12

Taumalolo makes a huge run up the centre of the field, followed by a good run by Linnett cutting inside. Cowboys attacking the line.

North Queensland Cowboys 18-12

PENALTY TO CANTERBURY!

Thurston is penalised for joining the tackle late, and was all over Inu as he tried to play the ball. The Dogs will attack from halfway.

North Queensland Cowboys 18-12

The teams are back on the field and we're almost ready for the second half.

North Queensland Cowboys 18-12

Halftime here at Bluetongue Stadium, with the Cowboys leading the Bulldogs by 18 points to 12 in what has been a see-sawing first half punctuated with strong runs, big hits and some Johnathan Thurston magic.


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North Queensland Cowboys 18-12

PENALTY TO NORTH QUEENSLAND COWBOYS!

Inu is penalised for shoving the man playing the ball. The Cowboys attack from 40m out from the line.

Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 12-4

Bulldogs having plenty of success attacking the fringes. On this occasion Inu beats Thurston on the outside, looks for support inside and a Cowboy touch means it's 6 to go. Bulldogs attacking the line.

Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 12-4

Reynolds and Perrett combine down the short side and go very close. Bulldogs still attacking.

Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 6-4

PENALTY TO CANTERBURY! The Cowboys are penalised for not being straight at marker, and the Bulldogs will resume the attack from 35m out from the line.

Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 6-4

This could be first blood to the Cowboys! Jason Robinson sends it upstairs after signalling TRY!

Johnathan Thurston put up the high kick from the attacking 40, Turner failed to gather cleanly under heavy pressure and Graham pounces.

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The Bulldogs kick off and Scott is thumped in his first run for season 2013!

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Johnathan Thurston leads his troops out, including club debutant Scott Moore.

Michael Ennis runs out ahead of the Dogs, who hand a first-grade debut to young prop David Klemmer, while the high-profile new face is of course rampaging second-rower Tony Williams.

We're just seconds away from kickoff here at Bluetongue Stadium.

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Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to Bluetongue Stadium and our LU live updates for this blockbuster opening round clash between two potential premiership heavyweights, the Canterbury Bulldogs and the North Queensland Cowboys.

News out of the sheds pre-game is that both teams will run out as named during the week, meaning Mitch Brown drops off the Bulldogs bench, whilst the services of Scott Bolton and Robert Lui won't be required for the Cowboys tonight.

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UNFORCED ERROR NORTH QUEENSLAND COWBOYS


Brent Tate spills it out the back 20m out from his own line, and the Bulldogs bounce. Moore and Thurston are penalised for not being square at markers, and Inu will take a shot for goal.

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