Cowboys halves classy in Brookvale outing

v BYE

The North Queensland Cowboys have comfortably accounted for the Sea Eagles 34-18 as they visited Brookvale Oval in front of 11,734.

Michael Morgan shone in the halves as his class provided the foundation for the first four-pointer of the game. Kyle Feldt found himself on the end of bullet pass which left the Sea Eagles grasping at air. The NRL Bunker was called in to review the try, and the live decision stood as the Cowboys took a 6-0 lead after 13 minutes.

Kyle Feldt was on the mark again as a lucky bounce off a Johnathan Thurston grubber kick gifted the winger his second try in as many minutes. The Cowboys were in control as they clicked into gear, leading 12-0 at the 16th minute.

Another visit to the NRL Bunker saw Antonio Winterstein awarded another Cowboys try after any doubt of double movement was cleared. He powered through the Manly goal line for his four-pointer and Thurston added the extras to bring up an 18-0 lead after 20 minutes.

Big news from the Sea Eagles camp during the week was the news Jamie Lyon would retire at the end of the season. His skills were on display in the 22nd minute as he chased through a Daly Cherry-Evans grubber kick which was cleared by hawk-eye in the NRL Bunker. Manly were on the board, however trailed 18-6.

Next, Michael Morgan showed why he was selected for the Australian Test team next Friday as he bagged a solo four-pointer with a surging 20 metre run through the Manly defenders. His footwork made the Sea Eagles look foolish as the Cowboys brought up a 22-6 scoreline.

Lachlan Coote looked to ice the first half with a field goal in the closing seconds. However, his attempt was just wide of the uprights, and the Cowboys took a 16-point lead into the sheds.

It took 23 minutes into the second half for points to be posted successful. Manly had a string of penalties, which to their dismay were unable to add points to the board.

The Cowboys extended their lead to 22 points as Gavin Cooper sailed over the try line courtesy of a Johnathan Thurston short pass. Manly gave up another four-pointer with JT capturing the attention of the defence enough to create the space for 'Coops'.

Thurston's skills were on display five minutes later as his ball work fooled the sliding defenders with a switch - delivering a floating pass giving Kane Linnett an open line to score in the western corner. The Cowboys jumped on a 4-on-2 overlap to give them a 26-6 lead at the 63rd minute.

The Sea Eagles looked to close on a positive note as they managed to add two tries to the board in the final minutes - the first through Daly Cherry-Evans who crossed in the 75th minute as he picked up a deflected kick off the goalpads. Pita Godinet followed up the DCE solo performance as he found a gap in the Cowboys defence. Godinet broke free to link with Jake Trbojevic who somehow managed to grubber on the angle to set up the points for the club debtutant. 

The Cowboys proved too strong in the end as they closed out the game with a 22 point victory. The only injury concern out of the game is for the Sea Eagles full-in fullback, Dylan Walker who left the field in the 56th minute with a leg complaint.

Both sides will enjoy an extended break with Rep Round, before Round 10 action sees both sides hit Suncorp Stadium for a double header - the Cowboys "visiting" the Storm before the Sea Eagles "host" the Broncos!