The Ridiculous Last 12 Months Of Broncos Vs Cowboys Games

Forget State of Origin, the best rivalry in rugby league right now is between the Broncos and Cowboys. Jamie Wall looks back on the last 12 months of the Queensland Derby.

The Brisbane Broncos and North Queensland Cowboys have played each other five times since the start of the 2015 NRL Finals. Three of those matches have been decided by one point, and three went to extra time. One was the 2015 Grand Final, which went to extra time AND was decided by a single point. The battle for bragging rights in Australia’s Sunshine State is producing some of the best games of rugby league ever seen in the modern era. Here’s how the best rivalry in rugby league right now has played out since Week 1 of the Finals last year:

2015 Qualifying Final: Broncos 16-12 Cowboys

Glory goes to those who honour the past. With the Broncos wearing a their throwback heritage jerseys, a piece of Ben Hunt magic opened up the Cowboys for the first try in front of a packed Suncorp Stadium. Antonio Winterstein hit back for the visitors, but Anthony Milford scorched in to make sure the Cowboys were playing catch up for just long enough. It was the sweet white collars that made all the difference.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0sF3VBVoivc

2015 Grand Final: Cowboys 17-16 Broncos (Golden Point)

The game where Johnathan Thurston went from hero to zero to hero in the space of five minutes. Poor Ben Hunt just went straight to zero. Before the dramatic finish and golden point hysteria, the match started with a length of the field try to Corey Oates on the very first play. The Cowboys managed to regain their composure to hit back through Justin O’Neill and James Tamou, before Jack Reed and Corey Parker’s boot seemed to have given the Broncos the Premiership. Then… well, watch what happened in the end of perhaps the greatest Grand Final ever.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mVAQuRC5qlY

2016 Round 4: Broncos 21-20 Cowboys (Golden Point)

Watch: Full Game | Condensed

(Bitter)sweet revenge. It wouldn’t have made up for the Grand Final loss, but a golden point reversal in front of 50,000 home fans was as close as the Broncos were going to get. Milford again blasted through the Cowboys line to get on the scoreboard early, but it was Parker’s boot again that did the bulk of the scoring before James Roberts scored late. In reply, Jake Granville, Michael Morgan and Ethan Lowe crossed for the Cowboys. In a perfect world it would’ve been Hunt that kicked the game winning field goal, but it was Milford – proving that he’s more than just a clean pair of heels. Must be something about those heritage jerseys?

[rugbypass-ad-banner id=”1473723640″]

2016 Round 11: Cowboys 19-18 Broncos

Watch: Full Game | Condensed

Got your breath back? The venue now shifted to Townsville, where Matt Scott got the home crowd out of their seats early after he crossed for a try. Grand Final hero Kyle Feldt duffed two kickoffs in a row, and the Broncos cashed in with two Matt Gillett tries. Jordan Kahu pushed the lead out to 10 before the Cowboys mounted their comeback, first through Lachlan Coote then O’Neill. Thurston didn’t want to work overtime that night, calmly slotting a field goal with five minutes to play to snatch the win.

2016 Qualifying Final: Cowboys 26-20 Broncos (Extra Time)

Watch: Full Game | Condensed

The final chapter in a year of pulsating encounters even had an extra time postscript. After a range of uncharacteristically sloppy play from the Cowboys and characteristically excellent goal kicking from Parker, the Broncos should’ve sealed this one early. But O’Neill decided to get himself re-acquainted with the tryline, dotting down twice and giving the Cowboys the lead. Oates then struck back for the visitors, then Thurston levelled the scores for yet another extra time period. This time new rules meant it wasn’t a field goal that separated the teams, but it was still Thurston plunging in the dagger, setting up the match winner with a spectacular pass to Michael Morgan.