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Cowboys v Warriors preview
North Queensland Cowboys v Warriors
1300SMILES Stadium - Saturday 5:30pm 
Both the Cowboys and Warriors will come into this match as last start winners, and have named unchanged sides from those that played last weekend.
The Warriors took on the Tigers in Manu Vatuvei's 200th first grade game, and finished on top in what was a scrappy affair. Vatuvei entered the field with a tear in his eye, but left it with a massive grin after scoring two tries.
The Cowboys are on a three game winning streak, defeating the Rabbitohs, Panthers and Storm. Of those victories, Johnathan Thurston was instrumental in most of the Cowboys tries, although their forward pack have been the unsung heroes in the past few weeks. Against the heavily favoured Rabbitohs pack, Matt Scott, Jason Taumalolo and Gavin Cooper all made over 150 metres, while Jake Glanville, James Tamou, Ben Hannant and Scott Bolton all contributed with a century. Off the back of this go forward, playing halfback is a dream.
Attack is not a problem for the Warriors either. Last week against the Tigers, almost every player on the park made 100 metres, Chad Townsend and Thomas Leuluai the only exceptions. On top of that were several players over 150 metres. The Warriors have definitely lived up to their reputation as being one of the more difficult sides to defend against.
Last meeting: Round 3 2014 - North Queensland Cowboys 16 New Zealand Warriors 20
Who to watch: Golden Boot v Golden Boot. Thurston v Shaun Johnson.
Behind massive forward packs full of metre eaters, the battle of the two halfbacks should be spectacular. Thurston has been the catalyst for almost all of the 78 points his side have piled on in the past three weeks, throwing crisp passes to his outside men, and directing play like only JT can.
On the other hand, Shaun Johnson has only found form in the last couple of weeks, but now that he has he doesn't look like letting up. I believe the key to this form is Johnson's running game. One of the most important aspects to a halfback's game is the ability to ball play at or through the line, and Johnson has definitely taken to that in the last 80 minutes of football. By taking the ball to the line, he's forcing the defence to make late decisions in defence, and half a chance is all his massive ball runners need to make a line break. On top of that, Johnson is more than capable of breaking the line himself, and proved as much against the Tigers.
The favourite: The Cowboys are deservedly favourites after iling on the points in the past 3 weeks, but do not discount the Warriors. Despite their ups and downs, on their day the Warriors are one of the most devastating sides in the competition, and will cause more than a few headaches for the Cowboys defensive line.
My tip: Cowboys by 10 in a high scoring game, with almost every player on the field to have a line break at some point.
1. Lachlan Coote 2. Justin O'Neill 3. Tautau Moga 4. Kane Linnett 5. Antonio Winterstein 6. Michael Morgan 7. Johnathan Thurston 8. Matthew Scott 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
1. Tuimoala Lolohea 2. Jonathan Wright 3. Konrad Hurrell 4. Solomone Kata 5. Manu Vatuvei 6. Chad Townsend 7. Shaun Johnson 8. Jacob Lillyman 9. Thomas Leuluai 10. Ben Matulino 11. Bodene Thompson 12. Ryan Hoffman 13. Simon Mannering
Interchange: 14. Nathan Friend 15. Dominique Peyroux 16. Sam Lisone 17. Albert Vete 18. Raymond Faitala-Mariner
Referees: Gerard Sutton, Grant Atkins; Sideline Officials: Michael Wise, Dave Ryan; Video Referees: Shayne Hayne, Ben Galea;