Itโs taken five long years of frustration, disappointment and rebuilding, but the North Queensland Cowboys are back in the NRL finals for the first time since 2017.
Though it ended in a grand final appearance, that campaign was filled with struggles and disbelief as the team overcame injury after injury, losing co-captains Johnathan Thurston and Matt Scott to shoulder and ACL injuries respectively by the mid-point of the season.
In the stretch of games leading up to the finals, coach Paul Green was considering asking the NRL for special dispensation. At one point the Cowboys were missing eight of their usual starting side but they refused to say die, defying expectation and limping all the way to a decider that eventually proved too much of a mountain to climb.
Thankfully, regardless of how far they go in this yearโs series, they wonโt have to overcome so many obstacles in 2022.
โWeโre a lot more prepared for this series,โ says back-rower Coen Hess, one of the few remaining Cowboys from that 2017 Grand Final.
โIn 2017 we barely scraped in. We didnโt think weโd make it, we had to rely on results.
โBut weโve really solidified our position this year, it was a lot more organised this time around. The only issue we had to worry about (in the final rounds) was where we would play.โ
Though injuries havenโt been an issue this time around, the Cowboys are still under pressure after losing their grip on second place as well as their last three contests against top eight opponents.
Though the Cowboys have lost just four games since the middle of April, those defeats have come at the hands of Penrith, Cronulla, South Sydney and the Roosters.
But despite the appearance of some cracks in the plan, Hess says nothing is changing after a year thatโs delivered plenty of positives.
โItโs business as usual. Everyone knows finals football is a different beast, weโve already put the season behind us,โ Hess told Zero Tackle.
โObviously weโre very proud of what weโve achieved this year, but itโs an entirely new ball game now and weโre preparing for a tough contest.โ
Roughshod Rookies
Results on the ladder havenโt been the only cause for celebration and optimism in the tropical north, with a number of fringe and youth players stepping up and making a noticeable impact on the teamโs fortunes after the disappointment of 2021 โ epitomised by the recent news that Scott Drinkwater had signed with the club until 2027, a just reward for his sensational form and commitment to the club.
โWeโre not doing anything really different to what weโve done in the past, but I think itโs the age of the group (thatโs having an impact),โ Hess said.
โIn the past itโs been a bit more spread out (the age and experience), but now weโve got a core group of good young talent.
โTheyโve played a bit of footy with โ and against โ each other coming through the grades, and thatโs helped them become more familiar with each other.โ
While Drinkwater, Tom Dearden and a number of other young Cowboys have all made an observable impact, few have been quite so memorable as that of Jeremiah Nanai.
Hess played a similar role for the team during their last finals charge as a hard-running, try-scoring young back-rower, and he believes the lead candidate for this yearโs Rookie of the Year award can be a huge asset in the NRL Finals.
Nanai has been in sensational form in his debut season, scoring 18 tries in just 25 appearances and earning selection to Billy Slaterโs victorious Queensland team - and he's only going to get better.
โHeโs a confident kid, itโs great to see,โ said Hess.
โThe club had big wraps on him coming through the ranks. Heโs surprised us all โ but heโs probably surprised himself as well as to how fast heโs burst onto the scene and how much of an impact heโs having.
โHeโs a force to be reckoned with and itโs great to see. You need people like that in your team, who can score a try out of nothing โ especially in the finals.โ
Hive Mind and a Half
For all the advantages that a young team provides, few of the breakout campaigns currently being enjoyed in Townsville would likely be possible without the addition of premiership-winner and former Shark Chad Townsend.
Though he rarely attracts the headlines of the gameโs more renowned No.7โs, Hess says the teamโs leader is โright up thereโ with some of the best halfbacks the game has seen.
โHeโs playing a similar role as JT (Johnathan Thurston) used to do for us. Heโs like having an on-field coach and he makes everyoneโs jobs a lot easier, heโs always talking.
โMy role can get pretty tough and physical in the middle, but Chad is everyoneโs eyes and ears โ and brain โ out there on the field. He tells us what to do and we react off that.โ
While Townsend might be the teamโs brain on the field, theyโve also got one in the coaches box. Todd Payten is the lead candidate for the Dally M Coach of the Year award after taking the Cowboys from 15th to the finals in the space of two years.
According to Hess it was a massive undertaking, but Payten has proved heโs the right man for the job.
โHe gave everyone a call. I had him as an under-20s coach and assistant for a while,โ Hess said.
โHe didnโt talk much to me, let me know he got the job and that he was looking forward to working with me again. That gave me much more confidence.
โHeโs had to throw out the old playbook and bring in an entirely new one. Heโs basically re-wired all of our brains and changed the way weโve done things. He made us play the way he wanted us to โ and itโs paying dividends now.โ
The Burden of History
Itโs been a remarkable year for the Cowboys, regardless of what happens next. Though the weight of history is against them this weekend, Hess says the younger group (with some former Sharks included) wonโt feel the burden of any statistical hoodoos.
The Cowboys have lost their last eight meetings with the Sharks in a run stretching back to 2018 - a run that was regularly assisted by current Cowboys Chad Townsend and Valentine Holmes.
The Sharks are also in impeccable form, with 11 wins from their last 12 outings - but as the old saying goes, the finals are an entirely different beast.
โIt helps that weโve got a young group. Only guys like Jason (Taumalolo) have been around long enough (to be aware). I donโt think any of the young kids would even remember. Weโre just focussed on the game.โ
The last three times the Sharks and Cowboys have met in the finals, whoever wins has gone on to make the grand final.
The Qualifying Final will be held at Cronulla's PointsBet Stadium on Saturday, September 10. Kick-off is at 7.50pm.
