Cowboys’ NRL title defence over after 32-20 defeat by Sharks

NORTH Queensland’s NRL title defence is over after the Cowboys were thumped 32-20 by a red-hot Sharks outfit at Allianz Stadium.

Michael Morgan is wrapped up by Sharks centre Ricky Leutele. Picture: Gregg Porteous

STOP the fight. North Queensland’s title defence is over.

The battle-weary Cowboys’ quest for back-to-back premierships officially collapsed as the Sharks qualified for their first grand-final in 19 years with a 32-20 carve-up at Allianz Stadium.

No team since the NRL’s inception has pulled off the title double and the Cowboys became the latest victims, suffering a bloody demise by their own hand.

Granted, the Sharks, as fresh as pressed linen, were slick, powerful and energetic from the opening seconds.

But North Queensland will rue an error-riddled first-half implosion headlined by Lachlan Coote’s third-minute gaffe which started the rot as the hungry Sharks ran riot.

Inspired by two-try pivot James Maloney, Cronulla surged to a 14-0 half-time lead and they went for the jugular after the break to deliver the bullet to the Cowboys’ brave title defence.

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Johnathan Thurston can’t hide his disappointment during the Cowboys’ defeat. Picture: Gregg Porteous

The defeat continued the Cowboys’ Allianz Stadium nightmare, with the club having failed to win their past six matches there spanning 2329 days.

Before 36,717 fans, the Cowboys trailed from start to finish and were clearly mentally and physically battered by last week’s epic extra-time defeat of the Broncos.

“Once they got the lead, they just strangled us and that’s semi-final football,” Cowboys co-captain Johnathan Thurston said.

“We kept shooting ourselves in the foot, we came in with a 60 per cent completion rate.

“We couldn’t transition to attack and we kept turning the ball over.

“We had an opportunity to do something special but we weren’t good at all.”

James Maloney scores a try for the Sharks.

The fatigued Cowboys were towelled up in midfield, with key forward triumvirate Matt Scott, Jason Taumalolo and James Tamou all failing to register 100 metres.

North Queensland’s first-half featured more blunders than an episode of the Benny Hill Show.

So clinical throughout the season, the Cowboys made four gaffes alone in the opening 15 minutes as Cronulla went for the jugular with a furious beginning.

Gradually, almost imperceptibly, the premiers’ spirit began to break.

There is no question last week’s Broncos epic left the Cowboys short on petrol. Factor in arguably their worst first half of the season, and they were a team on their knees.

Not even a team of the Cowboys’ quality can compete with 35 per cent of possession, coach Paul Green later lamenting his side’s title collapse.

“It’s an opportunity lost, you work so hard to give yourself a chance, so that’s the tough thing,” he said.

Matt Scott and the Cowboys were well held by the Sharks.

“You can use it (the Broncos game) as an excuse but we were a fair way off our best. Fatigue would have played a part, we had a trip to Melbourne before the Broncos game.

“We just needed to find some rhythm, there was plenty of time on the clock at 14-6 but they did a good job of stifling us.

“The disappointment we are feeling at the moment, we have to hang on to that and hold on to that feeling for next year.

“We just needed to keep our composure better, particularly at the start we tried to force things and put ourselves under too much pressure.”

The Cowboys’ title defence is over after the Sharks defeat.

The second half was death by a thousand cuts. Coote gave the Cowboys hope with an opportunistic 43rd minute try to bridge the deficit to 14-6, but the Sharks always looked more energetic and more hungry.

North Queensland were on the ropes. And when Luke Lewis (53rd minute) and Maloney (56th) barged over, it was the killer one-two punch that left the Cowboys’ title defence was on the canvas.

CRONULLA 32 (J Maloney 2 S Feki L Lewis C Townsend tries J Maloney 6 goals) bt NORTH QUEENSLAND 20 (K Feldt 2 L Coote C Hess tries J Thurston 2 goals) at Allianz Stadium. Referee: Gerard Sutton, Ben Cummins. Crowd: 36,717.

Originally published as Cowboys’ NRL title defence over after 32-20 defeat by Sharks