North Queensland Cowboys vs South Sydney Rabbitohs Preview
South Sydney are undermanned due to Origin absentees and the Cowboys should be too good at home as a result. North Queensland have also won three straight against Souths and can cover with Scott Drinkwater to star.
- North Queensland have covered the line in their last 3 matches against South Sydney
- South Sydney have scored 22 points or less in their last 4 matches against North Queensland.
- South were held to just 10 points against the Dolphins last week.
- Scott Drinkwater has scored 4 tries in his last 4 games.
Head to Head
North Queensland have won the last three meetings against South Sydney including a 24-16 victory last season.
The last four matches between the Rabbitohs and Cowboys has gone under the game total.
North Queensland Cowboys Form - Cows Over A Shaky Start
The Cowboys produced one of their toughest wins of the season last round, defeating the Roosters 18-12 despite missing key personnel. Liam Sutton impressed on debut in the halves, while Jake Clifford controlled territory brilliantly and Scott Drinkwater again played a major attacking role.
North Queensland have now won three of their last five matches and continue to improve defensively after a shaky start to the season. They rank near the top of the competition in both run metres and linebreak generation, while their kicking game has helped consistently win field position battles.
The Cowboys also look far more balanced offensively than earlier in the year. Drinkwater remains the focal point around sweeping shifts and support play and comes into this game having scored 4 tries across his last 4 matches.
South Sydney Rabbitohs Form - Absentees Impacting
South Sydney remain dangerous with the ball but enter this matchup understrength and vulnerable defensively.
The Rabbitohs have averaged 32.4 points over their last five games, although those numbers have been boosted by high-scoring wins over Melbourne and Cronulla.
The concern here is the missing personnel. Cameron Murray and Latrell Mitchell are massive outs both defensively and in transition attack, while Campbell Graham’s absence weakens the outside backs even further.
Cody Walker will still create chances, but Souths now rely heavily on their spine producing points through broken play.
Defensively, the Rabbitohs continue to concede too many metres through the middle and have struggled to contain stronger forward packs away from home.
North Queensland’s physical style and territorial game plan could frustrate Souths and force them into low-quality attacking sets.