Massive defensive contrasts define contest as Cowboys star comes ...

The North Queensland Cowboys have confirmed a home final with a dominant 44-6 win over a helpless and incredibly poor Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs side in Round 27.

Pre-game Todd Payten told Fox League he wanted this game to be a “hit and run.” He got exactly that as his side raced to their most impressive win of the season against a Canterbury side that at times looked like a NSW Cup side.

The result has confirmed the Cowboys as one of the biggest threats to the top sides in the competition, while providing the second reality check for the Bulldogs - who still qualify for the finals for the first time since 2016 but have played like the Canterbury side’s of the last few years in recent weeks.

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There was a semi final air to this game right from kick off. Sure Canterbury were without five of their typical starting 17, but their defence was up for the fight early.

As was the Cowboys’, especially after a week of criticism of their defensive performance against a weakened Storm. Payten’s side arrived at Accor Stadium with a point to prove: they’re not just an attacking side.

It took 12 minutes for the games first points to be scored, through a Valentine Holmes penalty goal following a Viliame Kikau late shot on Jake Clifford.

Prior to Holmes’ two point shot, the game was largely played between the two sides’ 20 metre lines, with the Cowboys gaining more of the ascendancy.

And it would be the away side who would score the game’s first try, through club legend Kyle Feldt.

Feldt intercepted a Drew Hutchinson pass and charged down the field, only for Connor Tracey to bring him down. On the next set the Cowboys scored through their right winger following a beautiful shift.

The game would return somewhat of an arm wrestle, though the Cowboys middle continually punched holes into the Dogs defensive line and caused Cameron Ciraldo’s side problems they’ve rarely had to deal with this season.

Through this power running their next try came, through Heilum Luki in the 28th minute.

A punching set through the guts of the Dogs defence brought Canterbury’s right edge back rower, Jacob Preston, infield to make a covering tackle.

North Queensland attacked the space vacated by the edge forward through Luki, who was near impossible to stop from such close range.

“You said hammer and chisel. They are just going to work,” Fox League’s Michael Ennis remarked after Luki’s try.

From there it was all Payten’s side, who grew into the game more and more as the minutes passed, helped by arguably the Dogs worst half of footy all season.

By halftime, Ciraldo’s side had made seven errors, missed 17 tackles and completed at just 68% while having been tackled just once inside North Queensland’s 20 metre zone.

A late Kikau error gave the Cowboys great field position, which they nearly capitalised on through Drinkwater, who was first to a clever Jake Clifford chip infield but was beaten by a devilish bounce that allowed Reed Mahoney to turn the ball dead.

Off the ensuing set of six it was a piece of attacking brilliance that broke Canterbury’s defensive line right on halftime.

Tom Dearden found Jeremiah Nanai with early ball, but instead of running with the ball, he popped a clever pass inside to Drinkwater, who capped the set play with a try.

The second half could not have begun better for the Cowboys, who nearly scored twice inside the opening eight minutes only to be denied by a Stephen Crichton intercept and then a Feldt knock on.

Feldt losing the ball came after another Luki line break from halfway, which saw the Cowboys edge forward opt to take Connor Tracey on instead of finding a teammate with a pass.

It was a relief for the Bulldogs, who were out on their feet on the following Luki’s break, though it was the only relief they’d get throughout the second half.

In the 56th minute Feldt rectified his error by scoring the 150th try of his career. Again, it was a Luki break a few tackles earlier that created the opening for the right winger to score.

“This is very much a statement night from the Cowboys,” Fox League’s Andrew Voss remarked after Feldt’s second of the night.

Canterbury’s woes were compounded four minutes later when Val Holmes grubbered for himself to score and extend the lead to 32, before a Toby Sexton try in the 62nd minute gave the Bulldogs fans something to cheer about.

Murray Taulagi’s intercept in the 70th minute before racing away to score and cement this as the “Cowboys’ best performance of the season” in the eyes of Ennis.

The Cowboys left winger scored again in the 74th minute, rolling over from close range, adding further misery to the Bulldogs and ensuring Todd Payten’s side head into their home final with the wind in their sail and an extreme confidence.

Here are the three biggest talking points to come out of the game!

COWBOYS’ BRILLIANT DEFENCE

After last week, where they shipped 30 points to an under strengthened Melbourne side, there were worry signs about the Cowboys defence heading into the finals.

This is after all a Cowboys side that aren’t renowned for their defensive resolve having conceded 30 or more points six times this season.

For the large part Payten’s side have rightly been lauded for their attacking fright and rarely their defensive resolve.

In a frightening sign for the rest of the competition they meshed both in their big win over the Bulldogs: scoring 44 and keeping Cameron Ciraldo’s side to just six points.

Granted they weren’t helped by a blunt Dogs attack that made 15 errors and had just two tackles inside the Cowboys 20 metre zone, and 31 in their half, throughout the whole game.

But still it was the Cowboys consistently bruising defence, particularly when the Dogs attempted to bring the ball out of their own end, that suffocated the home side and culminated in the visitors securing a home final.

It would please Todd Payten immensely, and should send a warning sign to the rest of the NRL: if they play as they did against the Bulldogs they will be hard to stop.

LUKI’S COMING OF AGE PARTY

No one doubts the talent of Cowboys back rower Heilum Luki. Physically he is the perfectly built edge forward; quick, tall, powerful and agile.

However, injuries and form have meant Luki has been viewed as a significant work in progress.

Against the Bulldogs the 23-year-old showed the high ceiling he has in the NRL, and the frightening potential many know he possesses.

Put simply he terrorised the Dogs right edge defence, which is usually heavily fortified by Jacob Preston and Stephen Crichton.

Against Luki those two looked uncharacteristically elementary in defence, leading to the edge forward having arguably the best game of his career.

Luki finished the game with 11 runs for 144 metres, 10 tackle breaks, four line breaks and 22 tackles without a single miss.

For context, Fox League’s Michael Ennis explained in the 57th minute that Luki “came into tonight with just two line breaks all season.”

DOGS DEFENSIVE WOES

For just about the majority of this season the Bulldogs have been billed as one of the best side’s in the NRL, but against the Cowboys Cameron Ciraldo’s side defended as if it were 2023 again.

The 44 points the Dogs conceded is the most they’ve conceded since Round 21 last year, with worrying signs emerging throughout the game for Ciraldo and his coaching staff.

Canterbury were slipping off tackles and allowing the Cowboys to punch holes both in behind the ruck and out wide, particularly through Heilum Luki, with incredible ease.

Over the 80 minutes the home side missed 39 tackles and allowed the Cowboys to run for 1642 metres, 600 metres more than the hosts themselves managed.

Errors did not help Canterbury’s cause. They made 15, most of which were simple handling errors within their own half that only served to give the Cowboys more field position and fatiguing the Bulldogs more.

Of course this comes just a week after the Dogs shipped 34 points to the Sea Eagles, meaning they’ve conceded 78 points in the final fortnight of the regular season.

By comparison, in the five weeks preceding their Manly loss - where they won all five matches - the Bulldogs conceded just 72 points at an average of 14.4 per game.

Granted the Bulldogs were without Josh Addo-Carr, Bronson Xerri, Matt Burton and Kurt Mann and played with two debutants, Eli Clark and Jonathan Sua, next to each other on the left edge.

But at this time of the season excuses only mean so much and Canterbury cannot hide behind these excuses heading into their first finals series since 2016.

Burton, Addo-Carr and Xerri will be back for the finals next week, though Mann won’t, which is a significant loss to their defensive efforts through the middle of the field - where the Cowboys had great luck throughout the game.

It’s not panic stations just yet, but on the basis of the last two weeks Canterbury shouldn’t be too confident in their hallmark defensive resolve during the finals.

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