Johnathan Thurston questions Cowboys desire following defeat to South Sydney

JOHNATHAN Thurston has questioned the Cowboys premiership desire following their 31-18 defeat to South Sydney.

North Queensland Cowboys against South Sydney Rabbitohs NRL game at 1300SMILES Stadium. Cowboys Johnathan Thurston. Picture: Evan Morgan

JOHNATHAN Thurston has questioned North Queensland’s premiership desire after Souths’ midfield mauling raised fears Cowboys enforcer Matt Scott is playing busted.

Thurston conceded North Queensland were riddled with nerves as the Rabbitohs ramped-up their title defence with a 31-18 demolition of the Cowboys in Townsville on Thursday night.

In the process, the defending premiers delivered a blueprint to dismantle the Cowboys, working over Scott and front-row cohort James Tamou as they systematically stormed through the rucks.

A fortnight ago, the Cowboys were favoured to win the minor premiership en route to the club’s first title in 20 years.

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The Cowboys were dominated in the middle of the field.

But consecutive losses to fellow title contenders Cronulla and Souths has raised queries as to whether the Cowboys possess the hunger and forward mongrel to clinch the holy grail.

Thurston won’t relent until he breaks the club’s premiership drought, but admits the Rabbitohs gave the Cowboys an insight into the desire that wins titles.

“They beat us up a bit, it’s a nice little wake-up call for us,” Thurston told The Courier-Mail.

“It’s a reality check for us in that respect _ they were more desperate than us.

“We were a little bit nervous in some areas. We let a few high balls bounce, we didn’t get through our sets like we normally would, we were a bit nervous and that showed on the field.

“When you give a side like Souths leg-ups, they make you pay and that’s what they did.”

Cowboys coach Paul Green lamented an 18-penalty contest which hampered match flow, but the spotlight is on Scott after the Rabbitohs ran riot in the middle third.

The Maroons hardman made just 75 metres against the premiers, one of the lowest outputs of his career and well shy of the 145m he has averaged this season.

Scott has degenerative discs in his neck and back and has required intermittent cortisone shots for the past two years to keep him on the park.

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North Queensland have lost back to back games for the first time since the start of the year.

The Cowboys’ No. 1 prop returned to action on Thursday night after a week’s rest, but Souths did a job on Scott, forcing he and Tamou to make 63 tackles collectively.

North Queensland could slip to third on percentages if the Roosters beat the Eels tonight, but Thurston challenged the side to hit back in Saturday night’s road trip to face the Warriors.

“It’s not panic stations,” he said. “We just need to be better with our attack and have that same intent with our defensive style.

“If we brush up on a few areas and be more disciplined, we can bounce back, but it needs to happen quickly.”

Thurston’s scrumbase partner Michael Morgan said he didn’t care if critics wrote the Cowboys off as a title force.

“It doesn’t bother me what other people say to be honest,” he said.

“If other people question us that’s their opinion, but we’re not even talking titles.

“It’s week to week for us, we have things to work on and that’s what we’ll continue to do.”

Originally published as Johnathan Thurston questions Cowboys desire following defeat to South Sydney