North Queensland Cowboys head coach Todd Payten has revealed he is not in fear of losing his job, despite mounting pressure and losses.
The Townsville-based outfit were again short on effort and execution on Thursday evening against the Dolphins, falling short in their quest to turn a worrying form line around.
Trailing 24 points to 6 against the red-hot Dolphins at the halftime interval, the Cowboys were able to launch a second half comeback, but the Dolphins kicked away late to secure a 43 points to 24 win.
Payten's side are widely viewed as one that have enough talent to be well entrenched in the top eight, but they have won just one of their last seven and now sit 12th on the NRL ladder, five points out of the top eight.
They do have a bye up their sleeve, but with a tough run home, they will need to be close to perfect down the stretch to qualify for the finals.
It has led to speculation Payten could be sacked at the end of the season, and while the Cowboys have backed him, mounting losses will only serve to add to the pressure and questioning.
Payten though said he isn't giving the rumours any energy.
“It's part of the business I'm understanding of that,” Payten said during his post-match press conference.
“I've got myself to a point where I don't give that any energy. It hasn't always been the case, but through experience, my focus goes into getting this team right and what we're doing day to day.
“And then when I'm away from here I'm getting better and being more present with my family. That's my two focuses at the moment and that won't change.”
The Cowboys coach isn't the only one under the pump around the competition, with both Newcastle boss Adam O'Brien, and Gold Coast mentor Des Hasler under pressure for their jobs, and potentially set to be sacked at the end of the season.
Payten has flown under the radar because of the poor performance of the Knights and Titans, but the latest losing streak has him in the fire of fans who have had enough.
The coach admitted Thursday's start against the Dolphins was 'disappointing'.
“Very disappointing seeing the points that we did (concede) in that first 40. It put us under far too much pressure and it was too much to chase down,” Payten said.
“We showed a heap of fight, got ourselves back in the game but a couple of costly moments with 12 or 13 minutes to go quelled anything that we were putting together.”
