SYDNEY, NEW SOUTH WALES - MARCH 05: Roosters coach Trent Robinson watches on during a Sydney Roosters NRL training session at Kippax Lake on March 5, 2018 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)
The incredible turnaround of the North Queensland Cowboys in 2022 has surprised almost everyone.
Somehow, the side that finished 2021 in 15th spot as the competition's worst defensive side has just booked itself a home preliminary final.
North Queensland have languished in the bottom eight since 2018. But head coach Todd Payten has managed to change their fortunes.
With the 2022 Cowboys in mind, we will explore eight other times in which teams have been able to climb from one end of the ladder to the other in a single season.
There are many unwritten rules in life: Never ask a woman her age or a man his income, and the Wests Tigers are probably going to finish ninth
This was exactly the case for Tim Sheens West Tigers outfit in 2004, when they were leapfrogged by the Raiders in the final week of the home and away season to miss finals for the fourth straight year since the club's inception.
That would change the following year when the Tigers would claim a spot in the top four ending the regular season with 14 wins and 10 losses.
The 2005 West Tigers were a side that played their own brand of electrifying football.
Former Queensland halfback Scott Prince would steer the ship while a young Benji Marshall would weave his magic.
The merger club had never played finals before but they claimed some serious scalps on their way to a maiden premiership.
Week 1 saw them put 50 points on the Cowboys, Week 2 they outclassed the Broncos 34 points to 6, only to send the St George Illawarra Dragons - who were heavy favourites - packing in the preliminary final.
They beat the Cowboys 30 - 16 in a grand final which is perhaps most famous for Marshall's audacious flick pass to Pat Richards that saw the Tigers run the length of the field.
Tim Sheens would claim the Dally M for coach of the year, with Benji Marshall and fullback Brett Hodgson also claiming a spot in the Dally M team of the year.
The Canterbury Bankstown Bulldogs had once again fallen just short of the top eight in 2011, making it two years on the trot without a finals appearance.
Head coach Kevin Moore was sacked in Round 18 of that season and the club closed out the year in ninth spot.
The Bulldogs signed-up head coach Des Hasler fresh off a premiership victory with the Manly Sea Eagles.
The other big signing was that of St Helens prop James Graham who brought with him over 200 games worth of Super League experience and became a staple of the Canterbury forward pack.
What followed was a year in which the Bulldogs would claim the minor premiership-winning 18 from 24 during the home and away season.
The superb form of fullback, Ben Barba and coaching nounce of Hasler had elevated the Bulldogs to genuine premiership contenders.
At the Dally Ms, Barba's stunning season saw him win player of the year with 22 tries from 27 appearances.
Hasler would also go on to claim the 2012 coach of the year award.
Canterbury met a determined Melbourne Storm outfit in the grand final, spearheaded by the lethal trio of Cameron Smith, Cooper Cronk and Billy Slater.
Barba was shut down for the duration of the contest by the Melbourne defence and Canterbury would ultimately bow out, losing 14 - 4.
It had been 43 years since the Rabbitohs had claimed a premiership when they won the competition back in 2014.
But in the years following that premiership win, Michael Maguire's South Sydney side had scarcely fired a shot.
They were sent packing by the Sharks in the opening round of the 2015 finals, and could not crack the top eight in the two years that followed.
After finishing 12th in 2017 Maguire was succeeded by then-rookie coach Anthony Seibold.
The Rabbitohs already possessed a formidable squad, when Seibold joined in 2018.
With the Burgess brothers, Sam, George and Tom in the front row and Adam Reynolds and Cody Walker in the halves.
An edge forward combo of John Sutton and then rookie Angus Crichton.
Not to mention getting Greg Inglis back into the squad after he had missed almost the entirety of 2017 with an ACL injury.
The notable new addition being Origin player, Dane Gagai from the Newcastle Knights.
However, Seibold's real masterstroke came in unlocking the potential of Damien Cook at dummy half. Form that would see Cook crack the NSW Blues side.
The breath of fresh air Seibold brought to South Sydney was reflected on the ladder, as the Rabbits finished third with 16 wins from 24 played.
Their run would last until the preliminary final when they fronted old rivals the Roosters on their march towards the 2018 premiership, losing 12 -4 in the final game at the old Allianz stadium.
Going into 2016, it had been four years since the Raiders had been involved in finals football.
Ricky Stuart's side had finished the 2015 season with a record of 10 and 14 which saw them finish in tenth spot.
They had recruited the likes of Aidan Sezer from the Titans to play halfback, as well as Joseph Tapine from Newcastle and Elliott Whitehead from Catalans.
What came next was a season in which the Raiders became the most entertaining attacking sides in the competition.
Scoring 688 points throughout the regular season, 296 of which could be attributed to captain Jarrod Croker who assumed goal-kicking duties in addition to scoring 17 tries.
Their leading try scorer was Jordan Rapana who scored 20 throughout the season, second only to Suliasi Vunivalu at Melbourne.
The Raiders finished the home and away season in second place and bounced back from a qualifying final loss against the Sharks to confront the Storm in a preliminary final.
In the end, the Raiders would fall two points shy of the 2016 grand final losing 14 - 12 at AAMI Park after winger Edrick Lee fumbled the match-winning try.
The Roosters had endured two September's without the prospect of finals football, finishing 11th in 2011 and dropping to 13th in 2012.
It was time to make changes in the Eastern Suburbs and that started with head coach Brian Smith who was sacked with a year left on his contract.
At the end of 2012, the club also parted ways with its captain Braith Anasta who had been with the club since 2006.
In their place, the Roosters made a litany of acquisitions including Sonny Bill Williams, James Maloney and Michael Jennings.
They also signed up some experience in bringing Sam Moa and Luke O'Donnell back from the Super League.
Their biggest signing however was that of Trent Robinson in his first head coaching role in the NRL.
Robinson had led the Catalans Dragons to consecutive preliminary finals before signing with the Roosters and brought his winning ways back from France.
Under the captaincy of Anthony Minichiello, the Roosters claimed the minor premiership with 18 wins and 6 losses.
They met the Manly Sea Eagles on grand final night and walked away with the Provan Summons trophy, winning 26 - 18.
The tricolours also cleaned up at the 2013 Dally Ms, with Robinson claiming coach of the year, Maloney top point scorer and Roger Tuivasa Sheck and Boyd Cordner making team of the year.
Trent Robinson's career at the Sydney Roosters has been nothing short of fantastic, and for most, he has cemented his spot as an NRL master coach alongside the likes of Wayne Bennett and Craig Bellamy.
With three premierships and four minor premierships under his belt in his time in Bondi, there is only one blip on his gleaming Roosters resume... the 2016 season.
Admittedly, some external factors influenced the Roosters' plummet from a minor premiership in 2015 to finishing 15th the following year with a record of just 6 wins from 24 played.
Controversy, suspension and injury marred the season of lead playmaker Mitchell Pearce. With captain Boyd Cordner and prop forward Jared Waera-Hargreaves also limited in game time due to injury, effectively plucking the beating heart from the Rooster's engine room.
On a positive note, 2016 did introduce Latrell Mitchell to first grade with him being one of only 3 players to appear in all 24 games.
In addition to injury, they were stripped of some key personnel from yesteryears such as James Maloney, Roger Tuivasa-Sheck and Michael Jennings who all departed the club.
Despite all of this, Trent Robinson entered 2017 intending to make 2016 a distant memory and that they did with a dramatic turnaround on and off the field.
The signing of Luke Keary proved a masterstroke as well as the handy pickup of Michael Gordon.
Another year under the belt of Mitchell and Joseph Manu would also prove handy in future.
The Roosters concluded the home and away season in second place with 17 wins from 24 played.
They would have to wait another 12 months before premiership glory awaited once more though, as they were bounced out in the preliminary final by a surging North Queensland Cowboys side.
2008 had been a miserable year for the Bulldogs. They had claimed their fifth wooden spoon since the club's foundation in 1934.
Finishing the year with 5 wins from 24 played and a defensive record that was 144 points further in the hole than the team finishing 15th.
Just four years removed from their 2004 premiership victory, the club was forced to take out the chequebook and sign up some players to rebuild the club in 2009.
They acquired the services of halfback Brett Kimmorley and bolstered their spine with Michael Ennis at hooker.
The ever-reliable Josh Morris was brought in to play centre, with David Stagg, Ben Hannant and eventually, Greg Eastwood brought into the forward mix.
The Bulldogs came bounding up the ladder in 2009, finishing second with the best attacking record in the competition.
Unfortunately for Canterbury, their season came to a close when they ran into the wrong team at the wrong end of the season.
Old rivals the Parramatta Eels were on an unprecedented, Jarryd Hayne-fueled tear towards the 2009 grand final and cut the Bulldogs' season short a week beating them 22 points to 12 in the preliminary final.
The year was not without ceremony for Canterbury however with coach Kevin Moore claiming coach of the year at the Dally Ms.
Additionally, club icon Hazem El Masri claimed top point-scorer at 234 points in his final year of first-grade football.
It's perhaps the ultimate rugby league fairytale, to go from wooden spooners to premiers in just 12 months.
Unfortunately, this fairytale never got a happily ever after but going from 16th place to appearing in a grand final is not to be scoffed at either.
Under the gaze of current NSW coach Brad Fittler, the Roosters had concluded 2009 with 5 wins and 18 losses, with the club claiming its first spoon since the 60s.
Fittler would not oversee the 2010 season and it was instead up to veteran coach Brian Smith to put the pieces back together.
The home and away season was a marked improvement from the year prior, with the Roosters claiming sixth place and a spot in the finals.
2010 saw the club debut of Todd Carney whose fine form would see him claim the Dally M that year.
This season also saw the debut of current Roosters enforcer Jared Waerea-Hargreaves.
On their journey to the grand final, the Roosters would claim one of the most memorable finals wins of all time when they met the Wests Tigers at Allianz Stadium.
The 100-minute encounter was taken to golden point when Braith Anasta snapped a clutch field goal from outside 30 meters.
The match was decided in minute 99 when Shaun Kenny-Dowall intercepted a West Tigers spiral pass and ran 60 meters to score the match-winner.
Sydney Roosters 19 - Wests Tigers 15.
The Roosters met the Dragons in the grand final however Wayne Bennett's St George Illawarra side closed the book on a fairytale after halftime.
A close opening half saw the Roosters lead 8 - 6, but the Dragons reclaimed their mojo in the second 40 to claim a 32-8 win.