A number of huge games are set to conclude what has been a bumper 2017 home and away season with nine sides still in the running for a place in the finals, while the top four battle is as heated as ever.
North Queensland Cowboys v Brisbane BroncosÂ
1300SMILES Stadium, Thursday Night
When you looked at this fixture in prior to the season, you knew it was always going to have finals implications and as it stands today, that certainly is the case.
While both sides need to win for differing reasons, a loss for the home side could put their spot in finals football in serious jeopardy. For the first time in a long time, the Cowboys will have an unchanged line up after not picking up any new injuries last week against the Tigers and will look for a similar result against a Broncos side who were stunned last week against the Eels, conceding a mammoth 52 points at home.
The Cowboys' forward pack has been a strength of theirs all season and while Michael Morgan has thrived as the main playmaker in the halves, their execution at times has let them down and you can be sure that Wayne Bennett's side will bring it defensively this Thursday.
While defensively fragile at times, the Broncos are not to be questioned offensively and it's an area the Cowboys will find hard to stop. They have arguably one of the best spines in the competition that have performed consistently for the majority of 2017 and despite their defensive struggles last week, they still managed to score six tries.
The Cowboys have won the previous three meetings against the Broncos and would love nothing more than a morale boosting win over their interstate rivals on the brink of another finals campaign.
This traditional Queensland rivalry has been one that many have kept a close eye on in recent years and this edition will be no different.
Broncos by 4.
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