Matchday Details
Saturday 30 August – 7:35pm (AEST) – Queensland Country Bank Stadium, Townsville
📺 Broadcast: Nine / Fox League / Kayo
Referee: Ashley Klein | Bunker: Chris Butler
Cowboys
1. Scott Drinkwater 2. Semi Valemei 3. Jaxon Purdue 4. Viliami Vailea 5. Braidon Burns 6. Jake Clifford 7. Tom Dearden 8. Jordan McLean 9. Reece Robson 10. Jason Taumalolo 11. John Bateman 12. Jeremiah Nanai 13. Reuben Cotter 14. Zac Laybutt 15. Karl Lawton 16. Harrison Edwards 17. Thomas Mikaele 18. Kai O’Donnell 19. Marly Bitungane 20. Nicholas Lenaz 21. Jaxson Paulo 22. Kaiden Lahrs
Broncos
1. Reece Walsh 2. Josiah Karapani 3. Kotoni Staggs 4. Gehamat Shibasaki 5. Deine Mariner 6. Billy Walters 7. Ben Hunt 8. Corey Jensen 9. Cory Paix 10. Payne Haas 11. Jaiyden Hunt 12. Jordan Riki 13. Patrick Carrigan 14. Tyson Smoothy 15. Kobe Hetherington 16. Ben Talty 17. Brendan Piakura 18. Jesse Arthurs 19. Fletcher Baker 20. Delouise Hoeter 21. Jock Madden 22. Adam Reynolds
Match Preview
Another chapter of the classic Queensland derby is set to be written on Saturday night as the Cowboys host the Broncos. The Cowboys sit in 12th and are fresh off a 34-28 win over the Tigers, while the Broncos are poised in fifth after hammering the hapless Knights 46-12. This will be the last game of the year for the Cowboys, given they’re out of finals contention and have the bye next week. There’s still plenty on the line for the Broncos as they continue to push for a top four finish. Recent head-to-head results favour the Broncos heavily: they’ve won the last five match ups between the two sides, including a 26-16 win in round 3 this year.
For the Cowboys, Todd Payten has opted to run with the same squad that secured the come-from-behind win over the Tigers last week.
While the Cowboys’ season comes to a close, there’s Queensland bragging rights at stake. They lost to the Broncos earlier this year, so there’ll no doubt be some thoughts of revenge and one last opportunity to put a dent in the Broncos’ top four chances. With one last roll of the dice, don’t be surprised to see this Cowboys side put on one last points shootout in front of their home fans. Jason Taumalolo rolled back the clock last week, laying an excellent platform through the middle for the spine to execute when the game was on the line. His challenge this week will be matching it with Origin stars Payne Haas and Pat Carrigan – a mouth-watering match up in its own right. It’s also a big occasion for two of their stars. Reuben Cotter plays his 100th NRL game, and Jordan McLean plays his 242nd and final NRL game after announcing his retirement on Wednesday.
For the Broncos, Brendan Piakura returns from concussion on the bench, with Jesse Arthars reverting to 18th man. Adam Reynolds is named on the extended bench as he eyes a return from a hamstring injury that’s kept him sidelined since round 23.
Off the back of another thunderous win last week, the equation for the Broncos is simple – keep winning to give themselves the best chance at a top four finish. They’re currently two points behind the Warriors in fourth and have the superior points differential, which puts them in great stead to leapfrog them should the Warriors falter. In the absence of Reynolds and Ezra Mam, it’s clear that Reece Walsh has been the focal point of the Broncos’ attack. He’s lived up to the nickname ‘Reece Lightning’ in recent weeks and sparked the Broncos into form. The question remains – can he continue to do that if Reynolds returns to the side? Time will tell, but Walsh will be liking the look of the Cowboys’ right-edge defence this week. They leaked several tries on that side to the Tigers last week, and with Todd Payten naming the same side, expect the speed of Walsh to cause plenty of headaches for the Cowboys.
Prediction
RLZ Tip: Broncos by 4.
See our full Round 26 Predictions (live Wednesday 12pm) here: 2025 NRL Tipping: Round 26 Writer Predictions
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