Cowboys flattened at home against a refreshed Warriors side

Embed from Getty Images

North Queensland Cowboys v Warriors

Both sides saw a plethora of star players return from Origin duties [Cowboys] and injuries [Warriors], although the Cowboys just couldn't get the job done against an almost clinical Warriors side. 

The first half saw an untidy game of play from the Cowboys, with the side struggling in both defence and attack.

The Warriors got their first four-pointer in the 8th minute through Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad off the back one of the many Cowboys errors. 

Continuing to put on a powerful display of attack, the Warriors scored another three unanswered tries in the 13th, 18th and 32nd minute respectively. The side looked cohesive in both their attack and defence, looking refreshed after their Round 13 bye. 

Finally, the Cowboys managed to strike back in the 37th minute after a linebreak from Tom Dearden and perfectly timed pass to Scott Drinkwater. 

Chalk and cheese would be the phrasing to describe these two teams in the first half. The Warriors playing a clean, direct, and tidy game, being able to easily add on the points. On the other side, the Cowboys are compounding on errors, and just not being able to hold the ball nor have a solid line of defence, the fatigue clearly hitting them. 

Having a refreshed halftime break, the Cowboys had a strong start to the second half, improving their ball play and minimising the errors, but they weren't putting on the points to show it. 

Dallin Watene-Zelezniak then opens the points scoring for the Warriors in the second half in the 52nd minute, after a crusher penalty on the last tackle of their previous set. 

The 60th minute saw both Chanel Harris-Tavita and Chad Townsend sin binned, leaving both sides down a man. 

A slightly improved second half from the Cowboys compared to the opening half was not enough, continuously spending time on the Warriors line and unable to come up with points. 

In a miracle play in the 68th minute, Watene-Zelezniak manages to keep his foot in the field of play to bat the ball back, for Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad to score a double. 

Scott Drinkwater kicks off the 20-metre restart for the Cowboys to then get their first points of the second half in the 73rd minute through Braidon Burns. 
The Warriors clearly wanted to finish in style, scoring another try in the last three minutes, to make the final score line 42-12. 

In the end, the Warriors came out on top, as the well deserving winners of the clash, having an excellent game in attack and defence. 

Looking ahead to next round, the Cowboys take on the Raiders away from home and the Warriors take on the Storm back across the ditch at home. The Cowboys bye in Round 16 could not come fast enough for them, with the tiredness clearly hitting them, with their attack and defence struggling. Despite missing many key players the Warriors continue to show their dominance, which will only improve with the eventual return of players.