Kicking off Round 23 (Indigenous Round) is the Titans and Cowboys. The Cowboys are looking to overcome a heavy defeat while the Titans are looking to finish strong in the final stages of the season.

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Matchday Details

Thursday 6 August 2026 – 7:50pm – Cbus Super Stadium, Gold Coast
📺 Nine Now / Kayo / Foxtel
Referee: Adam Gee | Senior Review Official: Wyatt Raymond

Gold Coast Titans: 1. Keano Kini, 2. Dean Ieremia, 3. Jojo Fifita, 4. AJ Brimson, 5. Phillip Sami, 6. Jayden Campbell, 7. Lachlan Ilias, 8. Moeaki Fotuaika (c), 9. Oliver Pascoe, 10. Tino Fa’asuamaleaui, 11. Arama Hau, 12. Beau Fermor, 13. Chris Randall, 14. Kurtis Morrin, 15. Josh Patston, 16. Klese Haas, 17. Cooper Bai, 18. Sam Verrills, 19. Adam Christensen, 20. Jaylan De Groot, 21. Siale Faeamani, 22. Jett Liu

North Queensland Cowboys: 1. Scott Drinkwater, 2. Braidon Burns, 3. Zac Laybutt, 4. Tom Chester, 5. Murray Taulagi, 6. Jake Clifford, 7. Jaxon Purdue, 8. Griffin Neame, 9. Soni Luke, 10. Jason Taumalolo, 11. Heilum Luki, 12. Kai O’Donnell, 13. Reuben Cotter (c), 14. Ethan King, 15. Thomas Mikaele, 16. Matthew Lodge, 17. Coen Hess, 18. Sam McIntyre, 19. Kaiden Lahrs, 20. John Bateman, 21. Liam Sutton, 22. Ronald Philitoga

Match Preview

The opening game of Round 23 involves two Queensland teams desperate for redemption.

In a lopsided Round 22, both Gold Coast (42-6 against the Warriors) and North Queensland (82-12 against the Sydney Roosters) suffered heavy defeats.

The Cowboys’ loss was the most damaging, falling out of the top eight with a -98 differential. North Queensland have one more bye and four winnable games to end the regular season: the Titans, Parramatta, the Wests Tigers, and Canberra.

While the Titans have endured another poor season, they’ll still comfortably avoid the wooden spoon. Their highlights have been thrashing Parramatta, the last-minute win over Brisbane, the one-point win over Penrith, and scoring 38 points each against Manly-Warringah and St George Illawarra. The loss to the Warriors (with their home game feeling more like an away match) will hopefully prove to be a speed bump in their promising progress under Josh Hannay.

A big blow for the Titans, with Zane Harrison out for the season and Lachlan Ilias stepping into halfback. Harrison has impressed in his debut season, playing 11 games and kicking the match-winning field goal against Penrith in Round 16. Despite his premature end to 2026, Harrison should be the Titans’ first choice halfback for the next few years. Griffin Neame returns for the Cowboys, while Reed Mahoney is still out with concussion. Kai O’Donnell replaces Jeremiah Nanai (hamstring).

North Queensland holds a 23-13 advantage since the Titans entered the NRL, and has won the last three meetings.

The key match-up is between five-eighths Jayden Campbell and Jake Clifford. Campbell (140) and Clifford (136) are sixth and seventh on the leading point-scorers’ list this season. Clifford bounced back from his surprise axing against the Dolphins, regaining his starting spot against Brisbane and the Roosters, Campbell has played 17 of the Titans’ 19 matches this season. Campbell (6,099 at 358) and Clifford (5,946 at 312) are evenly matched with their kicking games, which is important as both the Titans (Harrison) and Cowboys (Tom Dearden) have lost their primary halfbacks. Whoever wins the kicking battle should win the match.

This could be a high-scoring game as both the Titans and Cowboys can leak points (Gold Coast 26.3 average conceded, North Queensland 27.6 average conceded). The Cowboys may be a little more desperate as they aim to return to the top eight and prove last Thursday’s performance was an aberration.

Prediction

RLZ Tip: Cowboys by 10.
Full Round 23 tips → /nrl-round-23-predictions-2026/
Bold call: Scott Drinkwater with two try assists.

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Andrew Pelechaty
Web Content Editor for Rugby League Zone.

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