Cowboys leave Dogs hanging by a thread
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North Queensland has beaten the Bulldogs for the second week in a row, with their thrilling 20-18 win leaving the Canterbury side sweating on other results to survive.
The first half was frighteningly similar to last weeks contest. The Cowboys started the better, converting their early dominance with tries to Johnathan Thurston and Paul Bowman inside the first nineteen minutes.
Thurston’s try was a classic movement involving Aaron Payne and Matt Bowen.
The Bulldogs responded quickly to the 12-nil deficit when Daryl Millard leapt above Cowboys winger Mark Henry to claim a Brent Sherwin bomb in the 23rd minute. Momentum had shifted and Willie Tonga scored five minutes later. Both sides traded penalty goals to leave the game locked at 14-14 at the break.
The Bulldogs could have had a significant lead had they capitalised on prime opportunities, Matt Utai spilling the final pass twice.
The visitors started the second half strongly, but it was North Queensland that broke the deadlock, when Jason Smith used all of his experience to draw in four defenders, before offloading to Thurston who burrowed over in the 51st minute.
The Dogs replied five minutes later when Andrew Ryan broke the line before finding Luke Patten, who swerved away from Bowen to score in the corner. El Masri took a deep breath before leaving the conversion attempt hanging to the right, leaving the Dogs down 20-18.
A succession of errors and penalties counted heavily against the Bulldogs, who scrambled brilliantly to keep the Cowboys away from the try line, but used a lot of energy in doing so. The penalty count ended 12-4 in favour of the hosts.
A stunning play almost stole the game in the dying moments when Sherwin found El Masri with a pin point chip from midfield, with the winger seemingly certain to score, until Matt Bowen chopped him down around the legs, forcing El Masri to drop the ball centimeters short of the line.
The Dogs would not get another opportunity.
The Bulldogs will now depend on Manly and Melbourne winning if they are to advance to week two. If results fall their way, the Dogs will play Parramatta next week in a Sydney blockbuster.
If Souths or Brisbane were to win this weekend, not only would the Dogs be removed, the Cowboys would have a week off and get a preliminary final in Townsville.
A sour note for the Cowboys, with Carl Webb exiting the match midway through the second half, with what appeared to be a significant calf injury.
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