North Queensland Cowboys Auckland Nines Preview

Pool: Hunua Pool (Roosters, Raiders, Rabbitohs, Cowboys)

Squad: John Asiata, Javid Bowen, Gavin Cooper (c), Kyle Feldt, Gideon Gela-Mosby, Jake Granville, Ben Hampton, Coen Hess, Shaun Hudson, Corey Jensen, Kane Linnett, Ethan Lowe, Michael Morgan, Justin O’Neill, Kalyn Ponga, Jason Taumalolo, Johnathan Thurston, Shane Wright

Games

vs Sydney Roosters (12:40pm Feb 4 AEDT)
vs Canberra Raiders (4:35pm Feb 4 AEDT)
vs South Sydney Rabbitohs (11:05am Feb 5 AEDT)

‘One of the strongest squads in Auckland Nines history’. Paul Green has gone all out this year as he looks to deliver a second Nines title to in the space of four years, and the fourth trophy of his short coaching career.

To sum up how strong this squad is, of the seventeen players that won the premiership in 2015, three departed at the end of last year. Of the fourteen players remaining, ten are listed in this squad. That’s a big move from Green, and one sure to pay dividends.

Despite signing with Newcastle from 2018 and beyond, Kalyn Ponga is included in the squad, a move sure to electrify the Nines with his dazzling footwork and quick turn of pace. Fellow speedster Gideon Gela-Mosby returns to the Nine after a thrilling tournament last year which saw him burst onto the scene. With Ponga and Gela-Mosby returning kicks, North Queensland are sure to see some cracking long-range tries on their highlights reel.

Who To Watch: Jonathan Thurston. Is there really any other option? Jason Taumalolo is the reigning Dally M Medalist, and Michael Morgan is a Kangaroos incumbent. But there’s really no other option than JT. One of the best rugby league players to walk the Earth, Thurston has been dominating NRL teams for years. The only player to have claimed four Dally M medals, nobody can read it like him. So imagine what he could do against a team with only nine defenders. Unstoppable.

Why They Can Win: Everything. Read the squad again, is there anything that can stop the Cowboys? More than half a dozen players have played international football, ten have won premierships, while the youngsters will look to push those players out of their spots. Morgan’s speed, Thurston’s precision, Taumalolo’s power, how can anyone truly stop all that with nine men? You can’t, as opposition teams are about to find out.

Why They Can’t Win: Expectations. Being called ‘the greatest squad in Nines history’ is as big a burden as it is a compliment. In the eyes of pundits the trophy is the Cowboys to lose. Expectations are a lot heavier than people think, and if the Cowboys are to win their second Nines trophy, they’ll to block out those around them. If they go into tournament thinking they’re unbeatable, that’s when errors begin to creep into games, tackles get missed. North Queensland are a professional unit, and they’ll need to prove it this weekend.

Prediction: The way this team is shaping up, there’s only one way to tip them. Most squads have rested their big names, but the only big names missing for the Cowboys are Lachlan Coote and Matt Scott. Whether it ends in a 50-0 victory or a single JT field goal, the Cowboys are simply too good to ignore.