Tigers legend Benji Marshall’s golden point field goal sinks North Queensland 27-26
Fourteen years after he dashed North Queensland’s hopes of a grand final victory, Benji Marshall has done it again, this time in golden point.
Tigers
Don't miss out on the headlines from Tigers. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Benji Marshall has once again shattered the hearts of the Cowboys and their fans in a 27-26 golden point thriller in Townsville.
After coming from 18 points down, the Cowboys put in a spirited second half performance to finish regulation time at 26-all.
Enter Benji.
The maestro - who 14 years earlier plunged the dagger into the Cowboys during the 2005 Grand Final with a classy flick pass - sunk the hopes of the North Queensland side with a golden point field goal to notch up the Tigers’ sixth win of the season.
The loss has dashed North Queensland’s finals’ aspirations and has sentenced them to 13th position on the ladder leading into next weekend’s bye round.
In a game of two halves, Cowboys coach Paul Green was left seeing red in the opening stanza as the visitors piled on three unanswered tries in the first 30 minutes of the match in what shaped to be an absolute mauling at home.
But the fans at 1300 Smiles Stadium were treated to a completely different Cowboys side in the second half, as they came from an 18-point deficit to take the game to extra time.
The Tigers continued their winning streak in the Sunshine State, now four consecutive wins in Queensland, as they caught the Cowboys napping out of the blocks to score two tries in the opening 10 minutes.
Fox Sports cameras caught Green absolutely fuming during the first half at one of the several poor decisions made by his players during play.
If he was blowing up in the coach’s box, one could only imagine what was said in the sheds’ at halftime as he gave his players an almighty spray.
But whatever Green said must have worked because the Cowboys started the second stanza with much more intent and determination.
Green will be left ruing his side’s defensive effort, after finishing the match with 15 crucial missed tackles and giving away nine penalties.
A high shot by Cowboys fullback Jordan Kahu on Tigers’ backrower Michael Chee Kam allowed the visitors to get to 26-24 with less than 10 minutes to go through a controversial penalty try.
The loss was compounded by yet another North Queensland injury, with Origin representative Coen Hess going down with a potential medial-ligament injury to his knee.
Almost half of their playing roster have been injured at some stage this year, including former Bronco Kahu, who made a miraculous recovery from a shoulder injury sustained two weeks ago.
The second consecutive loss by North Queensland has uncovered worrying chinks in their finals’ aspirations.
Cowboys skipper Michael Morgan needs to find some help in the halves as the side struggled to find a way through the Tigers’ defence without some lucky bounces and costly errors by the Tigers.
Next weekend’s bye round will give North Queensland a much-needed break to recoup before travelling down to Wollongong to play the Dragons.
FIVE THINGS WE LEARNED
1) The Cowboys have to address their slow starts. For the second consecutive week, North Queensland have started a match looking lacklustre and with no intent. They allowed the Tigers to score 18 points in 30 minutes which inevitably gave them little chance of sealing a comfortable win.
2) North Queensland’s injury crisis continues after backrower and Origin representative Coen Hess went down with a possible medial-ligament injury in his knee. He is likely to spend some time on the sidelines, dashing any hope of making an Origin recall this year.
3) The Cowboys seriously need to work on their tackling. Their first half defence was abysmal as they allowed the Tigers to stroll through their defensive line to score 18 points in 30 minutes. Their 15 missed tackles proved all the difference in the end as they allowed Jacob Liddle to break through the line and set up a try to send the game to extra time.
4) Michael Morgan still needs to find help in the halves. Halfback Jake Clifford put in a gallant performance but is still unable to find a way to set up tries, leaving it all to rest on skipper Morgan’s shoulders.
5) The Cowboys will be desperate to move into their new home stadium after the fortress of 1300 Smiles Stadium has lost its threat to visiting teams. The Cowboys have now lost five of their past seven games at home which will have left their diehard fans – who travel several hours to watch the game – heartbroken.
WESTS TIGERS 27 (M Chee Kam 2 R Matterson D Nofoaluma tries E Marsters 5 goals B Marshall field goal) bt NORTH QUEENSLAND 26 (K Feldt 2 J Bowen M Morgan tries J Clifford 5 goals) in extra time at 1300 SMILES Stadium. Referee: Ben Cummins, David Munro. Crowd: 11,692
‘Lost trust with me’: Tigers star addresses Benji falling out
After a turbulent 2024 Wests Tigers star Brent Naden has opened up on his falling out with coach Benji Marshall and addressed the speculation surrounding his future.
Fitness freak smashes club record
Their fitness standards were in the headlines for all the wrong reasons last year, but a young gun is helping the Wests Tigers make a splash in 2025.