Queensland Cup - Round 10 -
Preview

Redcliffe and Toowoomba still sit on top of the Queensland Cup ladder but both clubs were brought back to earth to some degree by results in the last round. Redcliffe in particular has been forced to do some soul searching during the week after a humiliating 38-22 loss to the Central Comets on Redcliffe?s home turf, Dolphin Oval. Regulars at the ground said it was one of the Dolphins worst performances in recent memory, and that is not meant to take anything away from the Comets, who may well have come of age with that win. Toowoomba on the other hand did not play badly in their 22-10 loss to the Burleigh Bears in the curtain-raiser to the big Broncos ? Newcastle NRL clash. Burleigh were simply superb on the night with desperate defence and good handling the highlights along with a great individual performance from halfback, Brett McConnell who scored two tries. So Redcliffe (14) remain on top of the Queensland Cup ladder on percentages from Toowoomba with the Dolphins facing another tough assignment at home this Sunday when they host the Easts Tigers, who are coming off a 48-24 defeat of Ipswich. Easts are in clear fifth spot on 12 points chasing their fourth win in a row. Toowoomba face a tough trip to Kougari Oval to play Wynnum who are on 13 points, the same total as Burleigh with the Bears earning third spot on percentages. Wynnum beat Brothers 52-30 last start after cruising to a 30 point lead and the Seagulls will have to be more ruthless against the Clydesdales. North Queensland, Norths and Central are on 10 points each, just two points outside the five with North Queensland the most likely club to grab two competition points this weekend because they host last placed Brothers Valleys at Dairy Farmers Stadium, Townsville in a curtain-raiser to the Cowboys ? Panthers NRL clash. Brothers Valleys showed last week they know how to score a try but their defence was too soft in their own ?red zone?. North Queensland rattled up 64 points in beating Souths Logan and in front of their home fans they should register another big win, although the Young Guns have lost a number of players to the NRL and the Queensland under 19 side. Norths play Ipswich at Bendigo Bank Oval on Saturday night and it really is close to the last throw of the dice for the Jets who have just a win and a draw to show from nine starts. Norths belted Tweed 56-16 last weekend in the ABC televised match and the Devils will be full of confidence. Central play Burleigh at Pizzey Park, Miami in the week?s ABC clash and this match has plenty of appeal after both teams recorded such impressive wins last weekend. In the other match the Tweed (six premiership points) can keep within reach of a top five spot with a win over Souths Logan at Piggabeen on Sunday. Souths Logan (two points) have a better attacking record than the Tweed but the home side?s defence is substantially better. The first Harvey Norman State of Origin match in Sydney on Wednesday will be the focus of the League world this week, with Queensland and New South Wales also meeting in a colts curtain-raiser.

Thanks to http://www.qrl.com for the article.