Cowboys slump to 0-2 as Sharks dominate 36-12 in Townsville

The Cronulla Sharks outmuscled the North Queensland Cowboys in a dominant 36-12 victory at Queensland Country Bank Stadium, exposing the home side’s frailties in defence and leaving them winless after two rounds.

The Cowboys had hoped for a response after their NRL Round 1 thrashing by Manly, but they were outclassed by a Sharks outfit that completed at 86% and controlled the match from the outset as the $1.36 favourite with the top NRL bookmakers.

Sharks centre Kayal Iro and second-rower Briton Nikora exploited North Queensland’s weak goal-line defence early, scoring to give their side a 10-0 lead.

Jaxon Purdue’s opportunistic try off a ricochet briefly pulled the Cowboys back into the contest, but Sam Stonestreet quickly restored Cronulla’s advantage, exposing the Cowboys’ left-edge defence.

At 16-6 at halftime, North Queensland was still in the fight, but the second half saw Cronulla tighten its grip.

The home side’s challenge became steeper when Purdue was sin-binned for a professional foul early in the second half.

Though the Sharks didn’t immediately capitalise, they soon broke the deadlock with tries in quick succession from Teig Wilton and Ronaldo Mulitalo.

From there, the floodgates opened, with Stonestreet and Iro crossing late to seal the result.

NRL Round 2 Highlights: Cowboys v Sharks

Coach Craig Fitzgibbon was pleased with his side’s effort, especially given the disruptions in preparation following their return from NRL in Vegas.

“Post Vegas, I’m really pleased with tonight,” he said.

“Five players had COVID, five had influenza A, we couldn’t prepare properly… The boys just had to show leadership and step up.”

He praised halfback Nicho Hynes for his performance, saying,

“He called all the sequences, forced the shots, and just kept getting himself on the ball.”

For the Cowboys, it was another concerning display, with coach Todd Payten admitting his side is far from where it needs to be.

“Every time we got in an arm wrestle, we came up with an error or a penalty, and then they’d score a try,” he said.

“That’s not going to win you games.” Co-captain Reuben Cotter echoed those frustrations, saying, “We just need to turn up for each other better in the tough parts of the game.”

North Queensland will have to regroup quickly, with injury concerns adding to their woes.

Winger Braidon Burns suffered a hamstring injury, while Jeremiah Nanai was dropped to Queensland Cup in a bid to regain form.

Payten remains hopeful that Jason Taumalolo will return next week, but their upcoming clash against the Broncos looms as another significant challenge.

Meanwhile, the Sharks will carry plenty of momentum into next week’s clash against the unbeaten Rabbitohs.

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