Thursday’s NRL 2017 Round 26 match is between Nth Queensland Cowboys and Brisbane Broncos. The opening kick is set to commence at 20:00 local time with the game to be played at 1300SMILES Stadium. The away team Brisbane Broncos are the favourites for the match. View our preview and teams for the game between Nth Queensland Cowboys and Brisbane Broncos.
When: 20:00 | Thursday 31/08/2017
Where: 1300SMILES Stadium
Preview:
The Cowboys can clinch a seventh-straight finals appearance with victory over Brisbane who have already secured a top-four berth. The Broncos will be eager to prove last week’s stunning 52-34 loss to Parramatta was an aberration, albeit a scary one given its proximity to the playoffs. The Cowboys get the home-ground advantage which has yielded them five straight against their arch-rivals in Townsville. Lachlan Coote will play for the Cowboys after being cleared of an ankle injury. The Broncos’ Korbin Sims is out with a broken arm, while Sam Thaiday has been named at prop and Jordan Kahu returns on the wing.
Key: It’s hard to see the Broncos’ defence being as lacklustre as it was last week. Look for them to bounce back in another close chapter of one of the NRL’s most-captivating rivalries.
Tip: Broncos
Odds:
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Tip: Brisbane Broncos at $1.48
Value Tip: First Try Scorer: James Roberts at $11.00
More Info:
Head to Head: Cowboys 15 Broncos 30 drawn 2
Last clash: Round 2, 2017 – Cowboys 21 bt Broncos 20 at Suncorp Stadium
TabSportsbet: Cowboys $2.70 Broncos $1.47
FootyTAB: Cowboys +4.5
Teams:
Cowboys: 
1. Lachlan Coote 2. Kyle Feldt 3. Javid Bowen 4. Kane Linnett 5. Antonio Winterstein 6. Te Maire Martin 7. Michael Morgan 8. John Asiata 9. Jake Granville 10. Scott Bolton 11. Gavin Cooper 12. Ethan Lowe 13. Jason Taumalolo 14. Ben Hampton 15. Coen Hess 16. Corey Jensen 17. Shaun Fensom 18. Sam Hoare 19. Kyle Laybutt 20. Braeden Uele 21. Enari Tuala
Broncos: 
1. Darius Boyd 2. Corey Oates 3. James Roberts 4. Tautau Moga 5. Jordan Kahu 6. Anthony Milford 7. Kodi Nikorima 8. Sam Thaiday 9. Ben Hunt 10. Adam Blair 11. Alex Glenn 12. Matt Gillett 13. Josh Mcguire 14. Benji Marshall 15. Tevita Pangai 16. Joe Ofahengaue 17. Herman Essese 18. Jai Arrow 19. Jaydn Su’a 20. David Mead 21. Todd Murphy
NRL News:
A worrying stat may suggest otherwise but Wayne Bennett insists Brisbane can still win the NRL premiership ahead of Thursday night’s crunch clash with North Queensland.
Bennett claimed the Broncos had moved on from last round’s shock 52-34 loss to Parramatta and believed they were “in as good a position as anyone” to claim the 2017 title.
Brisbane are guaranteed a top four spot and can finish as high as second with victory over a desperate North Queensland in Townsville.
However, their premiership credentials took a major hit from the Parramatta juggernaut last round.
It was just the second time in Broncos club history they had conceded 50 points at Suncorp Stadium.
But a much more concerning stat was expected to trouble Bennett ahead of the NRL finals – no team has conceded 50 points in a game and gone on to win the title in the same season.
Yet Bennett believed Brisbane were still on track for title No.7.
“We are in as good a position as anyone else,” Bennett said of claiming the title.
“A lot of teams aren’t going to be playing next week.
“All of our critics didn’t think we would make the eight so who knows what we can do from here.”
Bennett reacted to last round’s rout by calling in defensive specialist and ex-Broncos hardman Peter Ryan for a morning of brutal tackling drills on Monday.
However, Bennett claimed he was so convinced that last round’s loss was an aberration that he reckoned he did not sit his team down to address the thumping.
“To be honest with you I haven’t actually,” he said.
“And if they had been doing that all season it wouldn’t matter.
“But they haven’t been doing that all season – 21 out of 22 games ain’t bad.
“The team is not built on one defensive display good, bad or indifferent.
“We do it pretty well most weeks. We just had a bad day.”
Another key injury also could not waver Bennett’s faith in his side.
Brisbane received a blow when they lost form prop Korbin Sims (broken arm) for the season against the Eels.
He joins hooker Andrew McCullough (knee) who went down five weeks ago.
Sam Thaiday initially helped fill in for McCullough at rake but will now slot into the front row for Sims with Ben Hunt the starting No.9.
“I have been pretty pleased with how we have covered them (injuries) – I think we are in pretty good shape,” Bennett said.
“We are not overachieving by any means, but there is a lot of upside to this team.”
Bennett confirmed form backrower Alex Glenn would play despite missing Wednesday training with a groin complaint.
