Cowboys hold on against Warriors amid more poor officiating

The North Queensland Cowboys have defeated the New Zealand Warriors 18-12 at Dairy Farmers Stadium this evening.

In another match marred by atrocious refereeing decisions, the Cowboys held off a spirited Warriors comeback to win by six points and secure another valuable two points.

The Cowboys led 18-0 at one stage and looked like they were going to run away with the match but the Warriors dug deep and almost pushed the match to golden point but ran out of time. The Warriors were attacking with the last play of the game but referee Tony Archer called full time and the Warriors were denied the opportunity at one last play at the Cowboys line.

The controversial decision was an obstruction call against the Warriors when Wade McKinnon made a super break to zig zag through the Cowboys defence to score under the posts. The video ref ruled no try and in the end it was the difference in the score between the two sides.

The Cowboy scored tries through Ashley Graham, Carl Webb and Sione Faumuina but it was the last ditch defence from Matt Bowen that saved the Cowboys hide on more than one occasion.

For the Warriors, Steve Price and Wade McKinnon both had excellent games while the goal kicking of Michael Witt was superb, with two magnificent touchline conversions to keep the Warriors in the game.

A very entertaining game but the standard of officiating has reached an all time low with so many results decided by match officials rather than the skill of the players on the field.

Match Details Round 17 - Full Time :: July 7th, 2007 07:30 PM Venue: Dairy Farmers Stadium Referee: Tony Archer half time: Cowboys 12-0

North Queensland Cowboys 18 Tries: Ashley Graham, Carl Webb, Sione Faumuina Goals: Johnathan Thurston (2/2), Ashley Graham (1/1) New Zealand Warriors 12 Tries: Patrick Ah Van, Manu Vatuvei Goals: Michael Witt (2/2)

LeagueUnlimited.com Player of the Match 3 Points: Matthew Bowen (Cowboys) 2 Points: Sione Faumuina (Cowboys) 1 Point: Wade McKinnon (Warriors) LeagueUnlimited.com Live Commentary 0 min: A minutes silence for Joe Clarke, a former Cowboys junior who tragically passed away last week.

1 min: We are underway with the Cowboys kicking off to the Warriors in the first half.

4 min: Warriors applying the pressure early on but no points so far.

6 min: Cowboys knock on with the try line in sight. Warriors off the hook and working their way up field and now get a penalty to improve their field position.

8 min: Warriors fail to score after Simon Mannering makes a great break but Matt Bowen makes an even better tackle to pull him down inches from the line.

10 min: Carl Webb comes up with a terrible play the ball and the Warriors get the scrum feed 30 metres out from the Cowboys line.

12 min: Ashley Graham is pushed into touch and the Warriors are defending well at the moment.

15 min: Cowboys peanlised for an obstruction right on the Warriors line. Still no score in the match with neither side looking dominant at the moment.

18 min: Warriors force the ball into touch just metres from their own line and the Cowboys get a repeat set ten metres out but have just lost the ball and compounded the error by giving away a silly penalty.

23 min: Warriors force the ball dead and the Cowboys are slowly getting on top through field position and silly mistakes from the Warriors.

24 min: Possible try to the Cowboys...

24 min: TRY North Queensland Cowboys The Cowboys post first points through a clever kick for Ashely Graham, who scores in the corner to give the Cowboys the lead. Great kick from Thurston. Conversion attempt by Johnathan Thurston successful. North Queensland Cowboys 6-0

29 min: Possible try to the Warriors...

29 min: No try for obstruction. Worst decision I have seen all year and the Warriors have been on the back of some dud calls tonight.

35 min: The game starting to open up with some sides coming up with some line breaks but no one has been able to finish it off.

39 min: Possible try to the Cowboys...

39 min: No try to the Cowboys but they do get the penalty and a chance to extend their lead two minutes out from half time.

39 min: TRY North Queensland Cowboys Carl Webb scores right on the stroke of half time and the Warriors defence was non-existant but they have had to battle some ordinary decision from the referee tonight. Conversion attempt by Johnathan Thurston successful. North Queensland Cowboys 12-0

41 min: We are underway in the second half.

45 min: Cowboys on the attack but cough up the ball and let the Warriors off the hook.

46 min: TRY North Queensland Cowboys Faumuina scores a long range try through a chip gone wrong from the Warriors and it's a long way back for the Warriors now. Conversion attempt by Ashley Graham successful. North Queensland Cowboys 18-0

56 min: Warriors just hanging on against teh Cowboys and it looks to be a matter of time before the Cowboys score again.

62 min: Possible try to the Warriors...

62 min: TRY New Zealand Warriors The Warriors score in the corner to give themselves a slim chance of comeback against the Cowboys. Superb touchline conversion from Michael Witt. Conversion attempt by Michael Witt successful. North Queensland Cowboys 18-6

73 min: TRY New Zealand Warriors Vatuvei scores for the Warriors out wide and the last seven minutes will be very interesting. Another superb kick from Witt. Conversion attempt by Michael Witt successful. North Queensland Cowboys 18-12

77 min: Wade McKinnon knocks on ten metres out from the Cowboys line and may have blown their last opportunity to level the match.

80 min: The Warriors have come agonisingly short of pushing the match to extra time and te no try to Wade McKinnon now becomes a very controversial topic as well as the sub-standard officiating that continues to plague the NRL.