Scott Drinkwater defends performance after North Queensland Cowboys’ crushing NRL defeat

Scott Drinkwater insisted his own mental and physical preparation was up to scratch for round 1, warning Cowboys fans not to form “panic stations” just yet. Read what the fullback had to say for himself.

Scott Drinkwater of the Cowboys runs with the ball during the 2025 NRL Pre-Season Challenge match between Melbourne Storm and North Queensland Cowboys at Casey Fields on February 23, 2025 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Morgan Hancock/Getty Images)

Scott Drinkwater has defended his own mental and physical preparation after North Queensland’s thrashing in round 1, insisting it is not yet time for Cowboys fans to form “panic stations”.

Drinkwater was one of the Cowboys’ better attacking players in last week’s 42-12 defeat to Manly, scoring one of only two tries for the visitors, but the fullback came under fire for his defensive intent.

The star Cowboys custodian missed as many tackles as he made – five – while one ineffective tackle put his tackle efficiency at a team-low 45.45 per cent.

Drinkwater also led the team in handling errors (two), one of his four kicks rolled dead, and he made the fewest runs (10) and metres (100) of North Queensland’s back five.

He said his own personal preparation had been up to scratch, but questioned the concentration of some of his teammates during the game.

Luke Brooks of the Sea Eagles and Scott Drinkwater of the Cowboys compete for the ball during the round one NRL match between Manly Sea Eagles and North Queensland Cowboys at 4 Pines Park, on March 08, 2025, in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)

“The biggest one that probably came up in review was our concentration,” Drinkwater said.

“We got shown a few things about people not concentrating on their job, and Manly finding us out when that was happening.

“So preparation, concentration, all that comes into our performance.

“That game’s happened, (we) just (need to have) a kind of a goldfish memory now and move on, and look forward to what we can control.”

Despite the horror start to the season, Drinkwater was optimistic North Queensland would be able to turn things around quickly.

“I don’t think we can have any panic stations yet. It’s one bad performance, I guess in my career that’s going to happen again and again,” he said.

“As rugby league, it’s going to happen, but it’s just the way you turn up the next day, focused and ready to go again.

“Don’t dwell on it too much. We know the style of footy we can play, we just didn’t get the opportunity to put it on.”

Lehi Hopoate of the Sea Eagles scores a try before being disallowed during the round one NRL match between Manly Sea Eagles and North Queensland Cowboys at 4 Pines Park, on March 08, 2025, in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)

Drinkwater said enjoying his football was the biggest key to his weekly routine and making sure he is prepared for any game.

“I just enjoy playing. So come game day, it’s the funnest part about the week,” he said.

“That’s all you really need to do, is you know you’re going out there to play footy and enjoy it. And I guess what prepares you is training.

“It was only round 1, so you can’t say you were sore or anything, so there was no excuses there.”

The Cowboys have an opportunity to turn things around on Saturday when they host the Sharks, fresh off a 13-day lay-off following their match in Las Vegas.

Addin Fonua-Blake of the Sharks celebrates with teammates after scoring a try during the round one NRL match between the Penrith Panthers and the Cronulla Sharks at Allegiant Stadium on March 01, 2025, in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

Drinkwater said he was expecting a big response from his teammates.

“At least I know with this team, and after the performance that we put in, you know you’re going to get a good reaction out of the squad,” Drinkwater said.

“Hopefully everyone’s very dialled in and ready to right their wrongs from what they did in the game – or what they didn’t do in the game.

“From 1-17 (the Sharks) are so athletic and big and fast and strong, and obviously they’ve gained Addin Fonua-Blake, who is arguably the best prop in the game.

“Braydon Trindall is playing some outstanding footy, playing really confident, so those two guys are big keys for them.”

The Cowboys play the Sharks in Townsville on Saturday, March 15. Kick-off is at 4.30pm AEST.

Originally published as Scott Drinkwater defends performance after North Queensland Cowboys’ crushing NRL defeat