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Preview
Team News: Jordan Kahu makes his North Queensland debut at fullback, joining club debutants Tom Opacic and Nene Macdonald in the backline. New captain Michael Morgan replaces Thurston at halfback, with Te Maire Martinpartnering him in the halves. Josh McGuire will come off the bench. Gareth Widdop shifts to fullback, with Corey Norman at five-eighth and Matt Dufty on the bench. Jack de Belin is out, with Tyson Frizell shifting to lock and Jacob Host starting in the back-row. Mikaele Ravalawa debuts on the wing.
Prediction: Losing Ben Barba saw the Cowboys written off in many people’s eyes, but signing a player of Jordan Kahu’s calibre so late in the season has seen them bounce back. They’ve got the best forward pack in the competition, and the Dragons will be vulnerable with Jack de Belin out. Corey Norman is the new man in St George Illawarra’s spine, but too many cooks can spoil a broth, and the Dragons’ attack will be clunky. Morgan will be the man to lead his side to victory, and it’ll be a dominant performance. This match is tough to split according to the tippers, although we may need to side with 55% of our community. Cowboys by 13.
Previous 5 Games
North Queensland
| DATE | OPP | RESULT |
|---|---|---|
| 1/9/18 | Titans | W 26 - 30 |
| 24/8/18 | Eels | W 44 - 6 |
| 18/8/18 | Sharks | L 28 - 16 |
| 9/8/18 | Broncos | W 34 - 30 |
| 4/8/18 | Roosters | L 26 - 20 |
St George Illawarra
| DATE | OPP | RESULT |
|---|---|---|
| 15/9/18 | Rabbitohs | L 13 - 12 |
| 9/9/18 | Broncos | W 18 - 48 |
| 1/9/18 | Knights | W 14 - 24 |
| 26/8/18 | Bulldogs | L 0 - 38 |
| 18/8/18 | Wests Tigers | W 10 - 20 |
Team Line-Ups
Cowboys
Dragons
| Fullback |
| Wing |
| Centre |
| Centre |
| Wing |
| Five-eighth |
| Halfback |
| Prop |
| Hooker |
| Prop |
| Second Row |
| Second Row |
| Lock |
| Interchange |
| Interchange |
| Interchange |
| Interchange |
Team Stats
Cowboys
Dragons
All Runs
196 166All Run Metres
1662 1434Line Breaks
5 3Offloads
9 6Kick Metres
656 60740/20
1 0Tackles
314 385Missed Tackles
36 26Penalties Conceded
5 5Errors
8 13Player Stats
Top Point Scorer
 | | Michael Morgan | 4 |
| Gareth Widdop | 4 | |
| Euan Aitken | 4 | |
| Justin O'Neill | 4 | |
| Jordan Kahu | 4 | |
Top Goal Kicker
 | | Gareth Widdop | 2 |
| Jordan Kahu | 2 | |
| Michael Morgan | 0 | |
| Francis Molo | 0 | |
| Tyson Frizell | 0 | |
Top Try Scorer
| | Michael Morgan | 1 |
| Euan Aitken | 1 | |
| Justin O'Neill | 1 | |
| Javid Bowen | 1 | |
| Jordan Pereira | 1 | |
Top Try Assists
| | Michael Morgan | 1 |
| Justin O'Neill | 1 | |
| Corey Norman | 1 | |
| John Asiata | 1 | |
| Te Maire Martin | 1 | |
Top Linebreak Assists
 | | John Asiata | 2 |
| Justin O'Neill | 1 | |
| Corey Norman | 1 | |
| Jordan McLean | 1 | |
| Te Maire Martin | 1 | |
Top Linebreaks
 | | Jason Taumalolo | 2 |
| Michael Morgan | 1 | |
| Euan Aitken | 1 | |
| Blake Lawrie | 1 | |
| Javid Bowen | 1 | |
Top Runs
| | Jason Taumalolo | 21 |
| Nene Macdonald | 21 | |
| Josh McGuire | 17 | |
| Jordan McLean | 17 | |
| Mikaele Ravalawa | 16 | |
Top Run Metres
| | Jason Taumalolo | 286 |
| Nene Macdonald | 172 | |
| Josh McGuire | 154 | |
| Mikaele Ravalawa | 151 | |
| Jordan McLean | 141 | |
Post Contact Metres
| | Jason Taumalolo | 93 |
| Josh McGuire | 62 | |
| Mikaele Ravalawa | 59 | |
| Nene Macdonald | 57 | |
| Jordan McLean | 49 | |
Top Tackles
 | | Paul Vaughan | 42 |
| James Graham | 42 | |
| Coen Hess | 41 | |
| Cameron McInnes | 41 | |
| Jacob Host | 38 | |
Top Ineffective Tackles
 | | Te Maire Martin | 3 |
| Tyson Frizell | 2 | |
| Tariq Sims | 2 | |
| Paul Vaughan | 2 | |
| Cameron McInnes | 2 | |
Top Missed Tackles
| | Te Maire Martin | 5 |
| James Graham | 5 | |
| Coen Hess | 4 | |
| Justin O'Neill | 4 | |
| Jake Granville | 4 | |
Top Tackle Breaks
 | | Mikaele Ravalawa | 10 |
| Jason Taumalolo | 7 | |
| Jordan Pereira | 5 | |
| Nene Macdonald | 5 | |
| Michael Morgan | 3 | |
Top Offloads
| | John Asiata | 3 |
| Jordan McLean | 2 | |
| Jeremy Latimore | 2 | |
| Francis Molo | 1 | |
| Matthew Scott | 1 | |
Top Kick Metres
| | Michael Morgan | 474 |
| Corey Norman | 290 | |
| Ben Hunt | 217 | |
| Te Maire Martin | 132 | |
| Gareth Widdop | 100 | |
Top Penalties
 | | Josh McGuire | 2 |
| Tyson Frizell | 1 | |
| Coen Hess | 1 | |
| Corey Norman | 1 | |
| Cameron McInnes | 1 | |
Top Errors
| | Mikaele Ravalawa | 4 |
| Gareth Widdop | 2 | |
| Justin O'Neill | 2 | |
| Jordan Kahu | 2 | |
| Tim Lafai | 1 | |
Match Summary
Cowboys
Dragons
| 5 | TRIES | 2 |
J. Bowen 31' N. Macdonald 38' M. Morgan 56' T. Maire Martin 65' J. O'Neill 75' | E. Aitken 11' J. Pereira 78' | |
| 2/5 | CONVERSIONS | 2/2 |
J. Kahu 67' J. Kahu 77' | G. Widdop 12' G. Widdop 79' | |
| 8 | HALF TIME | 6 |
| ATTENDANCE | ||
| 18,415 | ||
Embarrassing effort from the dragons. Well done Mary. They’ll extend his contract on Monday for sure now.
I have said this many times, as long as McGregor is coach the Dragons will NOT win a premiership. Next week its Souths and the following week Brisbane. What does that mean? Zero wins and 3 losses to start the season the most likely outcome and bottom of the ladder. Well done McGregor !!
Looks like even the customary “April premiership” could be doubtful this year. Bit of a way to go before a pattern even develops in this comp but already the call for poor old Mary’s head is out there.
Don’t forget they were soft against Souths in Charity Shield and still conceding way to many tries too easily. Early days yes, buttheir record against Souths is woeful and play them next week and they are on fire. I said three weeks ago, dragons will start poorly but I doubt they’ll build momentum like rorters or strom did last year. I hope I’m wrong and maybe for once a slow start is ultimately a good thing for them. But I don’t rate Mary at all as a coach.