North Queensland star Scott Drinkwater may have given the first warning that the Cowboys were in danger of a historic thrashing five days before the Sydney Roosters ran riot in Townsville.
The Cowboys fullback had just helped his side claim an emotional Queensland derby victory over the Brisbane Broncos when Fox Sports host Yvonne Sampson suggested he celebrate with a beer.
‘Well Scott, if this is your last [Fourex] Queensland Derby, make sure that you go and grab an ale and enjoy it, because it certainly was one to enjoy,’ she said.
Drinkwater immediately pointed to the Cowboys’ short preparation for their next match.
‘Vonny, we’ve got a five-day turnaround, I’m filthy,’ he replied.
The light-hearted exchange appeared harmless at the time, but his concern proved telling when North Queensland returned to the field against the Roosters on Thursday night.
North Queensland Cowboys fullback Scott Drinkwater turned in a shocker against the Roosters
It came after Drinkwater had previously complained about the five-day turnaround between the Brisbane Broncos match and the Roosters mauling
The Cowboys looked tired and flat from the opening minutes as Sydney stormed to an extraordinary 82-12 victory.
It was North Queensland’s heaviest defeat and the most points the club has conceded in a match.
Sydney crossed for 14 tries, raced to a 48-6 halftime lead and recorded the third-highest score in premiership history.
The Roosters also became the first team to score at least 70 points in three premiership matches.
Halfback Sam Walker finished with 36 points after scoring a hat-trick and kicking 12 goals, recording the equal-fourth-highest individual tally in premiership history.
Drinkwater endured a particularly difficult night after repeatedly attempting to intercept passes instead of completing tackles as the Roosters tore through North Queensland’s defence.
Cowboys coach Todd Payten later revealed he had noticed another warning during the warm-up but did not anticipate the scale of the collapse that followed.
Coach Todd Payten said the five-day turnaround was no excuse and apologised to Cowboys members and supporters
‘A couple of things worried me in the warm-up. I watched us and then thought they just moved faster and tackled a little bit harder in the warm-up,’ he said.
Sydney then confirmed those fears by effectively ending the contest inside the opening quarter.
Payten described the defeat as potentially the lowest point in the Cowboys’ history and apologised to the club’s supporters.
‘That’s absolutely unacceptable. And as a coach for this club, it’s one of our darkest days, if not the darkest day, and I’d like to apologise to our members and fans that turned up here today and those that watched it at home,’ he said.
‘The game was out of reach after 20 minutes.’
Despite Drinkwater highlighting the tight turnaround five days earlier, Payten refused to use the schedule or the emotional win over Brisbane as an excuse.
‘Not making excuses, not making excuses at all. That’s between the ears, that’s where it is,’ he said.
Cowboys captain Reuben Cotter was just as blunt after finishing the match with only two runs while the Roosters controlled 65 per cent of possession.
Cowboys great Johnathan Thurston admitted that defence had always been an issue at the club, dating back to his playing days
The Cowboys posted that they were ‘dialed in’ just before the record flogging played out
‘The most embarrassing game we’ve ever been a part of, I reckon. We just didn’t turn up, physically, and we were loose all across the park,’ Cotter said.
‘It’s going to hurt for a bit. But we’ve got the weekend to think about it but [we need to] stick together and try and move on to next week because we’re on again down at the Gold Coast.’
Cowboys great Johnathan Thurston said defence had always been an issue at the club, dating back to his playing days in the early 2000s.
‘The Achilles Heels of this club has been our defence,’ he said.
‘Even when I was at the club we struggled defensively and sometimes we would score more points than the other team and we’d be 30-nil down at halftime.
‘And win 36-30 or something ridiculous like that.
‘I’d be zoning in on the defence. The coach wanted them to be physical, they were physical last week and on the five-day turnaround, that physicality was nowhere where it needed to be.’
Payten said he would not subject his players to an extensive video review of the record loss and backed the same group to respond.
‘I don’t think we review that. We certainly discuss it, but the message is we’re in on Monday, ready to work,’ he said.
‘We’ve got to find a way to get it back up week after week. I’m not making changes, that’s our best team.’
