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The Cowboys are through to the second week of the NRL finals after surviving a Kalyn Ponga masterclass to eliminate the Knights 28-16 on Saturday night.
They started slowly to trail 12-4 at half-time but surged back in the second half and will take off to Sydney next week to face the Sharks for the right to play Penrith in the Preliminary Final.
Ponga was magnificent with the Dally M Medal winner almost singlehandedly getting his team across the line but they paid the price for a sluggish start to the second half and a bombed try-scoring chance 10 minutes from full-time when the scores were level.
Reuben Cotter became the accidental hero for North Queensland with a bizarre try to lift his team to victory over Newcastle.
With the scores locked at 16-16 with seven minutes left, he touched down after a Jake Clifford bomb was batted back by Kyle Feldt, gets a slight touch from Heilum Luki’s leg, then Daniel Saifiti’s hand as he tried to grasp it and Cotter looked to have fumbled as he then attempted to gather the ball.
But the replay showed it missed his hands and ricocheted off his knee and the Maroons forward had the presence of mind to reach out and touch down just before Ponga could get to the Steeden.
“It was a brave call at the start of the season – Reuben Cotter named as captain alongside Tom Dearden but it’s for moments like that,” former NSW hooker Michael Ennis said on Fox League.
“Reuben Cotter just continues to put himself in positions when others just start to hesitate. He continues to find ways in games when his side needs him most.”
Cowboys coach Todd Payten was not surprised by Cotter coming up with an effort play so late in the game.
“I think that’s a great example of someone that keeps competing until the play has stopped,” he said.
“Reubs has done that his whole career. Some of the tries in these bigger games are going to be around kick defence and there were a couple tonight. We gave them one and we got one back, so shapes and plays are probably not going to be that potent against a good defensive team.
“We’ve got to scrap and fight and scramble and that’s what we did.”
Neither side ever had anything more than a tenuous grip on the Elimination Final at QCB Stadium with the sudden-death scenario bringing out the desperation from both teams.
North Queensland opened the scoring against the run of play when Kyle Feldt plucked a long-range intercept try in the 13th minute.
Ponga burnt Reece Robson on the right edge for Jayden Brailey to score and Fletcher Sharpe pounced on a Scott Drinkwater fumble as the visitors surged to a well-deserved 12-4 halftime lead.
But the Knights left their momentum in the sheds, along with their tackling ability.
Murray Taulagi touched down from a Valentine Holmes tap-on and veteran prop Jordan McLean ran off Drinkwater to make it 16-12 by the 52nd minute and the Cowboys were suddenly riding high in the saddle.
But the scores were level 10 minutes later when Dylan Lucas, deputising for injured NSW centre Bradman Best, plunged over out wide after Phoenix Crossland created space but Ponga’s conversion from out wide bounced clear off the post.
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Ponga was left kicking himself again in the 70th minute when he again broke free down the right and with support either side as he came to Drinkwater as the last line of defence, he fired a pass to Dane Gagai which was too low for the veteran centre, who coughed up the pill with the line wide open.
And when Cotter scored a few minutes later up the other end of the field, that 12-point swing meant the Cowboys lived to fight another day and the Knights’ final charge would go no further.
“I would’ve like that moment back for sure,” Ponga said in the post-match media conference.
Kiwi prop Leo Thompson finished the match in the sin bin for a high shot on Kyle Feldt as Tom Dearden dummied his way over to stretch the final margin to 12 and kick-start victory celebrations in the dying stages.
Thompson, who was on the receiving end of a humungous tackle from Jason Taumalolo in the second half, will likely cop a ban for his high shot which could put his New Zealand selection in jeopardy for the Pacific Championships next month.
Ponga could not have done much more for his team – brilliant in attack, leading from the front and it was a shame that his dud pass to Gagai ended up costing his side victory.
His brilliance in stepping past defenders with ease left some all-time greats of the game in awe as he racked up two try assists, a couple of line breaks, nine tackle busts and 171 metres from his 17 runs.
Immortal halfback Andrew Johns on Nine commentary described Ponga’s fancy footwork as being as potent as Benji Marshall in his prime.
“He’s on a whole other planet with his footwork and agility,” Johns gushed. “You’ve got to remember he’s playing against some of the best players in the world and he’s making them look silly.”
Maroons icon Darren Lockyer empathised with the plight of opponents trying to bring him to ground.
“Defenders can’t pick which way he’s going to go,” he said. “He’s incredible to watch.”
Knights coach Adam O’Brien was proud of the way his side defied the critics by nearly stealing the result.
“I don’t think the scoreboard is a reflection of the fight that’s in this footy team,” O’Brien said. “I just feel like we’ve turned the corner a fair bit in terms of our DNA.”
There was controversy this week when last year’s Grand Final referee Adam Gee couldn’t get a start in the four playoff matches.
Todd Smith has been a big improver this year but he made a few blunders in this game.
He had three calls overturned by Newcastle via the captain’s challenge – a knock-on from Viliame Vailea which he missed early, a Dane Gagai fumble which was actually a strip and a missed high shot on Ponga.
He will be lucky to survive the cull when two refs get the nod for next week’s semifinals.
Cowboys winger Kyle Feldt is one of only 17 players in premiership history with 150 tries.
His 32-year-old legs are not as quick as they used to be but they were fast enough to get him 85 metres to the try line at QCB Stadium on Saturday night.
Feldt’s 151st career four-pointer gave him 23 for the season, breaking the club record set by star fullback Matt Bowen in 2007.
In his final home game for the Cowboys, Feldt – who is off to the Super League next year to finish his career with St Helens – only played two Origin matches for Queensland, both in 2021, and was probably unlucky not to get more Maroons jerseys.
“He’s an important part of our team, he’s going great,” Payten said.
Both coaches came into this match with question marks over their long-term future if their team did not advance.
O’Brien is now the one who will enter 2025 under pressure to perform after the Knights couldn’t kick on after a promising start in their Elimination Final after hardly setting the world on fire as they flopped into eighth spot.
He has had five years at the club for three shortlived playoff tilts alternating with two losing campaigns.
The roster is decent although there is too much of a reliance on Ponga, who is chewing up a large chunk of their salary cap, as they lack of a top-shelf playmaker who can do the organising work so the fullback can pick and choose his moments.
O’Brien will have the first half of next season to keep the wolves from the door otherwise he could be running out of time to prove he can break the club’s premiership drought which goes way back to 2001.
“There’s a few things that play a part in what happens to your season,” O’Brien said, pointing to the fact that Ponga missed 11 weeks with a foot injury.
“We didn’t cave in, we kept fighting.
“We’re not content with one week of finals. We’d love to win a premiership. It takes time, a lot of effort and you’ve got to stick with it. We’re on the path, we’ve just got to stay on it and hopefully we can get there.”