Knightmare
Coach
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Saddle up- today is the last instalment in the trilogy:
Broncos v Cowboys, 2015
The lead in: After 20 years and 3 consecutive finals series of being robbed as payback for Origin by the jealous NSWRL stacked NRL, this game posed (for Cowboys fans) the possibility of a dream or a nightmare. Because either they would celebrate their 20th season with a maiden Grand Final win against their local rivals (and the flagship team in Qld at that) or they would have to endure their second Grand Final loss and spend the entire off-season putting up with gloating of Broncos fans and having to renovate all the doorways to accommodate their swollen heads. For Broncos fans, to make the Grand Final was beyond their wildest dreams 6 months earlier. Yet Uncle Waynes return had ushered in a grim, defence-oriented game plan that had seen them overturn the Cowboys and the Minor Premiers- the Roosters- on their way here. Nobody deserved a Premiership more than Broncos fans- theyd had to endure 9 years- NINE F**KING YEARS- without even making a Grand Final! It was time to have their loyalty rewarded, at long last. Supporting the Roar, Reds and Firebirds had been fun and introduced them to new people- but now was the time to remind the entire NRL (and especially their little brothers up north) why Brisbane were the only team in Qld worth bothering with. Game on!
State of the game: 2015 was Queenslands year- with the Maroons reclaiming the Origin shield and now, the first all-Qld Grand Final in the NRLs history (strangely, nobody on social or the news media seemed to mention this in the week leading up to the decider). This Grand Final was now about crowning THE Kings of Queensland- Mate against Mate, Cousin against Cousin, people who f**king hate the Broncos- go Cowboys! or F**k the Cowboys- were the Broncos and the world belongs to us on a plate! vs Im wearing my Maroons jersey to the game because were all winners and QUEENSLANDER!!!- f**k NSW!. Bring it on
FIRST HALF:
- 4th minute: Penalty Broncos. Cowboys are offside. Captain Corey Parker elects to go for the penalty goal, 42 metres out, in line with the posts. He manages to convert.
Broncos 2-0
- 6th minute: from the ensuing set of six, an Adam Blair offload sees the Broncos spread the ball wide out to Corey Oates on the left flank- hes got the pace and takes off down the field as the crowd goes wild. Hes untouched and scores the opening try off to the left of the posts. Parker takes an easy conversion.
Broncos 8-0
- 9th minute: Matt Gillett loses the ball on the 2nd tackle from the restart. From the ensuing Cowboys scrum feed, Jake Granville darts away, throws a dummy and passes the ball to Justin ONeill on his inside- who dives over to score the Cowboys opening try. Jonathan Thurston bangs over the conversion.
Broncos 8-6
- 12 minute: From the return set of six, JT puts up a bomb that is caught by ONeill- he looks to be going all the way to respond with a second try in the right hand corner- but Oates tackles him into touch just before the line.
-24th minute: From a repeat set of six on the Cowboys line, James Tamou brushes Sam Thaiday, barges over to score the second Cowboys try, just to the left of the posts- and put them in front. JT ads the 2 points.
Cowboys 12-8
- 33rd minute: JT spills the ball in a two-man tackle, its picked up by Gillett who scoots away then flicks it to Jack Reed, who races 20 metres untouched to score to the left of the posts. The video ref wants to double check that JT didnt have the ball stripped before its awarded. 80,000 people turn to the screen, where KFC reminds them of their $5 lunch deal before also informing them that its a Try. Jordan Kahu seals the conversion.
Broncos 14-12
HALFTIME: There have been 4 tries in the opening 40 minutes of this game, yet rather than being a free-flowing contest (of which the Cowboys are certainly capable) so far the game has felt more like an Origin match than a finals game between two club sides. Neither team is giving too much away in attack- whether thats down to the Broncos solid covering defence (despite less possession and territory) or the Cowboys being cautious is harder to dissect. The Cowboys have had more scoring opportunities than Brisbane so far, but the Broncos have been clinical and have given barely a hint at dropping their guard. The opening 25 minutes were end-to-end and gave the impression that this might be a high-scoring affair- but the last 15 minutes have become a lower-tempo, possession based territorial battle. Its too difficult to predict, with any confidence, who is going to win from here. Whoever wins though, we can guarantee that Gus "just knew they would do it. I just knew it!" Gus is such a f**king wizard like that. Why isn't he coaching?
SECOND HALF:
- 42nd minute: With the Broncos attacking their line early on, Reed is held down in a tackle by Morgan. Penalty Broncos, who elect to obey their master and go for the two points on offer as opposed to chasing (possibly) an 8-point buffer over the Cowboys to begin the second half. Kahu nails the penalty.
Broncos 16-12
- 49th minute: Darius Boyd takes a high bomb 20 metres from his line, Lachlan Coote charges in on him with an elbow to the head and a scuffle breaks out. Once its' settled? Play on.
- 54th minute: Morgan makes a charge at the Cowboys line, but the Broncos defence easily counters him and holds him up. 6 again for NQ.
- 60th minute: Right on the hour mark, with the Cowboys having a serious dig at the Broncos line, JT throws a pass to Kane Linnett on his left- but Linnett cant hold onto it and the ball fumbles off over the dead- ball line. Had Linnett caught it, he had 5 metres clear in front of him and would have scored a momentous try.
- 63rd minute: Cowboys have the ball within 15 metres of their line again, after a Thiaday knock on. Coote gets the ball and appears to be charging in for a try- but he is tackled just short. But he heaves himself up on his side, stretches out and grounds the ball firmly over the line. He celebrates (as do much of the crowd) but the referee wants to take another look. KFC remind people of their $5 lunch deal (did you know KFC have a $5 lunch deal? Wow!) Oh- and No Try for double movement.
- 68th minute: Ben Hunt sends a kick down towards Kyle Feldt. It trundles behind Feldt to the in-goal and he has to turn around, run back and clean it up- as Reed bears down on him and tackles him. Its a goal-line drop out and, for the first time in quite a while, Brisbane have a chance to get a try which would go a long way towards securing this game for them.
76th minute: Cowboys are working their way out of their own half, still hanging on but with time running out. Kane Linnett hits the ball up when Ben Hunt tackles him, picks him up and dumps him on his head. Off! yell Cowboys fans in unison as the penalty is awarded to NQ. Cowboys fans have seen tackles like this from Maroons players in Origin, but that was just passion. This though? Pure grubbiness pure and simple and he should be marched! Ben Hunt avoids meeting the same fate as Phil Sigsworth, but is put on report- and the Cowboys get to kick for touch and some much-needed metres in an instant.
78th minute: Milford makes a break down field- the Broncos could ice it here with less than two minutes to go. He passes to Hunt. Hunt is tackled and loses the ball 1 on 1 on the 4th tackle. Cowboys get another shot, albeit with 55 metres to make up.
79th minute: On the 5th tackle, 15 metres out, Matt Scott plays the ball and the ball goes left to JT. JT bumps off Broncos defenders and runs backward looking for a gap, retreating more than 20 metres away from the Cowboys line. He passes the ball right to Morgan, who veers up and over towards the right hand side of the field with Broncos defenders coming up to him. He flicks the ball out one-handed to Kyle Feldt on the wing, who finds a gap out on the corner and scores as the full-time buzzer sounds. The crowd leap to their feet as millions of TV viewers discover what Sterlo sounds like when he jizzes his pants. But first of all- the video ref has to make this official. The replays confirm there is nothing wrong with Feldts grounding of the ball. Try! This game isnt done with yet. And I have a strange craving for fried chicken
80th minute: Now heres the issue- JT has to take the conversion attempt from out on the right touchline. If he sinks it, Cowboys are the Premiers. If he misses- extra time, and this last ditch, buzzer effort could be for nothing. The scenario feels all so typical- scripted almost. JT paces about, readying himself to take the most crucial kick of his career with the whole stadium buzzing. JT lines himself up and strikes the ball- its medium height and curling around on target- it hits the right post and bounces away. JTs reaction says it all. Were going to golden point- with every chance that the Cowboys could be ripped off again- but no NSW team in sight to blame it on.
EXTRA TIME: JT meets up with Justin Hodges (did anybody remember he was playing tonight?) in the middle of the field for the coin toss. JT wins the toss, and announces that the Cowboys will be kicking off.
81st minute: Kyle Feldt kick off, the ball sails through the air as the crowd tenses itself for a heart-pounding 10 minutes or less that will surely follow. Bracing himself for the catch is Ben Hunt. Hes fixated on the ball as it plummets towards him- it rolls out of his arms. Knock on! Cowboys fans leap to their feet, as Hunt drops to his knees, head buried. 6 tackles to NQ- 10 metres from their posts- and a field goal will win this for them.
82nd minute: The scrum packs down- then breaks. The ball goes to JT, but the Broncos defence swarms him before he can get a shot away. The next 3 tackles see the ball moved across field, with Coote making up metres on the right. Tamou takes a safe tackle. Then on the 4th, the ball is flicked straight back to JT. Like a shot, he drops it and strikes it- right through the posts. Cowboys fans leap up as JTs team-mates rush in to mob him. Cowboys win! Game over! In the background, Broncos players slump to the ground, forlornly. Ben Hunt wishes there was a tunnel from here to China that he could hide away in. Uncle Wayne is already thinking about his post-match grumble concerning golden point. Broncos fans are consoling themselves that they may have lost the battle, but they won the war. They tell this to the guy standing next to them who happens to be Jason Smith, but they don't recognise him. All over NSW, fans are jumping about ecstatically- yours truly is hugging strangers with tears in his eyes- we cant remember the last time we cheered on a Qld team like this since ever.
FULLTIME: Cowboys 17-16.
THE VERDICT: Im glad I watched this game again, because my live memories of it are a bit fuzzy (but thats another story). Watching it back again, this game resembles more than a few of the Origin slogs witnessed over the years. It was a dour, grim, defensive encounter. In some ways it reminded me of Origin 2 last year- the result of the match and the drought-breaking win was more memorable than most of the game as it actually played out. The wider League community should be forever thankful the Cowboys saved us from a dull, defensive end to the game where Bennett (channelling Warren Ryan in 89) seemed to think employing shut-down, slow-down tactics against a team with potential to score from anywhere on the park would be enough to win. To be fair, they came within a second of this tactic working. This game, however, was all about the last 5 minutes and the rapid-fire chain of events that took place. Most dramatic end to a Grand Final? Almost certainly. Best Grand Final ever? Watching it back again, it didnt feel like it. Perhaps Im biased, because (at the risk of sounding like Gus) I always had a feeling the Cowboys would score another try- I didnt think theyd leave it so late- but even as Kyle Feldt crossed the line, I remember thinking Woah- NOW? They left it until now to do it? For mine, this game highlighted the fact that golden point isnt the fairest way to determine a winner in such a high-stakes game as this one. It would have been truly riveting to see, with 20 minutes extra-time, if the Broncos could hit back with an answer to the Cowboys try at the death? Could Wayne Bennett- the master coach- formulate a counter-attack that would have seen the Broncos fight their way back and win? Or would the Cowboys (like the Raiders in their maiden Premiership) have been able to prove with another 20 minutes that they had the upper-hand and deserved the result, no questions, ifs or buts? After the amazing final 3 minutes of this game, it could have added a whole other chapter to the fairy tale. But this is all hypothetical now- and (like plenty of others) I was just thankful that the Cowboys walked away with the trophy. I honestly had Cowboys are my team! stuck in my head for a week afterwards!
Broncos v Cowboys, 2015
The lead in: After 20 years and 3 consecutive finals series of being robbed as payback for Origin by the jealous NSWRL stacked NRL, this game posed (for Cowboys fans) the possibility of a dream or a nightmare. Because either they would celebrate their 20th season with a maiden Grand Final win against their local rivals (and the flagship team in Qld at that) or they would have to endure their second Grand Final loss and spend the entire off-season putting up with gloating of Broncos fans and having to renovate all the doorways to accommodate their swollen heads. For Broncos fans, to make the Grand Final was beyond their wildest dreams 6 months earlier. Yet Uncle Waynes return had ushered in a grim, defence-oriented game plan that had seen them overturn the Cowboys and the Minor Premiers- the Roosters- on their way here. Nobody deserved a Premiership more than Broncos fans- theyd had to endure 9 years- NINE F**KING YEARS- without even making a Grand Final! It was time to have their loyalty rewarded, at long last. Supporting the Roar, Reds and Firebirds had been fun and introduced them to new people- but now was the time to remind the entire NRL (and especially their little brothers up north) why Brisbane were the only team in Qld worth bothering with. Game on!
State of the game: 2015 was Queenslands year- with the Maroons reclaiming the Origin shield and now, the first all-Qld Grand Final in the NRLs history (strangely, nobody on social or the news media seemed to mention this in the week leading up to the decider). This Grand Final was now about crowning THE Kings of Queensland- Mate against Mate, Cousin against Cousin, people who f**king hate the Broncos- go Cowboys! or F**k the Cowboys- were the Broncos and the world belongs to us on a plate! vs Im wearing my Maroons jersey to the game because were all winners and QUEENSLANDER!!!- f**k NSW!. Bring it on
FIRST HALF:
- 4th minute: Penalty Broncos. Cowboys are offside. Captain Corey Parker elects to go for the penalty goal, 42 metres out, in line with the posts. He manages to convert.
Broncos 2-0
- 6th minute: from the ensuing set of six, an Adam Blair offload sees the Broncos spread the ball wide out to Corey Oates on the left flank- hes got the pace and takes off down the field as the crowd goes wild. Hes untouched and scores the opening try off to the left of the posts. Parker takes an easy conversion.
Broncos 8-0
- 9th minute: Matt Gillett loses the ball on the 2nd tackle from the restart. From the ensuing Cowboys scrum feed, Jake Granville darts away, throws a dummy and passes the ball to Justin ONeill on his inside- who dives over to score the Cowboys opening try. Jonathan Thurston bangs over the conversion.
Broncos 8-6
- 12 minute: From the return set of six, JT puts up a bomb that is caught by ONeill- he looks to be going all the way to respond with a second try in the right hand corner- but Oates tackles him into touch just before the line.
-24th minute: From a repeat set of six on the Cowboys line, James Tamou brushes Sam Thaiday, barges over to score the second Cowboys try, just to the left of the posts- and put them in front. JT ads the 2 points.
Cowboys 12-8
- 33rd minute: JT spills the ball in a two-man tackle, its picked up by Gillett who scoots away then flicks it to Jack Reed, who races 20 metres untouched to score to the left of the posts. The video ref wants to double check that JT didnt have the ball stripped before its awarded. 80,000 people turn to the screen, where KFC reminds them of their $5 lunch deal before also informing them that its a Try. Jordan Kahu seals the conversion.
Broncos 14-12
HALFTIME: There have been 4 tries in the opening 40 minutes of this game, yet rather than being a free-flowing contest (of which the Cowboys are certainly capable) so far the game has felt more like an Origin match than a finals game between two club sides. Neither team is giving too much away in attack- whether thats down to the Broncos solid covering defence (despite less possession and territory) or the Cowboys being cautious is harder to dissect. The Cowboys have had more scoring opportunities than Brisbane so far, but the Broncos have been clinical and have given barely a hint at dropping their guard. The opening 25 minutes were end-to-end and gave the impression that this might be a high-scoring affair- but the last 15 minutes have become a lower-tempo, possession based territorial battle. Its too difficult to predict, with any confidence, who is going to win from here. Whoever wins though, we can guarantee that Gus "just knew they would do it. I just knew it!" Gus is such a f**king wizard like that. Why isn't he coaching?
SECOND HALF:
- 42nd minute: With the Broncos attacking their line early on, Reed is held down in a tackle by Morgan. Penalty Broncos, who elect to obey their master and go for the two points on offer as opposed to chasing (possibly) an 8-point buffer over the Cowboys to begin the second half. Kahu nails the penalty.
Broncos 16-12
- 49th minute: Darius Boyd takes a high bomb 20 metres from his line, Lachlan Coote charges in on him with an elbow to the head and a scuffle breaks out. Once its' settled? Play on.
- 54th minute: Morgan makes a charge at the Cowboys line, but the Broncos defence easily counters him and holds him up. 6 again for NQ.
- 60th minute: Right on the hour mark, with the Cowboys having a serious dig at the Broncos line, JT throws a pass to Kane Linnett on his left- but Linnett cant hold onto it and the ball fumbles off over the dead- ball line. Had Linnett caught it, he had 5 metres clear in front of him and would have scored a momentous try.
- 63rd minute: Cowboys have the ball within 15 metres of their line again, after a Thiaday knock on. Coote gets the ball and appears to be charging in for a try- but he is tackled just short. But he heaves himself up on his side, stretches out and grounds the ball firmly over the line. He celebrates (as do much of the crowd) but the referee wants to take another look. KFC remind people of their $5 lunch deal (did you know KFC have a $5 lunch deal? Wow!) Oh- and No Try for double movement.
- 68th minute: Ben Hunt sends a kick down towards Kyle Feldt. It trundles behind Feldt to the in-goal and he has to turn around, run back and clean it up- as Reed bears down on him and tackles him. Its a goal-line drop out and, for the first time in quite a while, Brisbane have a chance to get a try which would go a long way towards securing this game for them.
76th minute: Cowboys are working their way out of their own half, still hanging on but with time running out. Kane Linnett hits the ball up when Ben Hunt tackles him, picks him up and dumps him on his head. Off! yell Cowboys fans in unison as the penalty is awarded to NQ. Cowboys fans have seen tackles like this from Maroons players in Origin, but that was just passion. This though? Pure grubbiness pure and simple and he should be marched! Ben Hunt avoids meeting the same fate as Phil Sigsworth, but is put on report- and the Cowboys get to kick for touch and some much-needed metres in an instant.
78th minute: Milford makes a break down field- the Broncos could ice it here with less than two minutes to go. He passes to Hunt. Hunt is tackled and loses the ball 1 on 1 on the 4th tackle. Cowboys get another shot, albeit with 55 metres to make up.
79th minute: On the 5th tackle, 15 metres out, Matt Scott plays the ball and the ball goes left to JT. JT bumps off Broncos defenders and runs backward looking for a gap, retreating more than 20 metres away from the Cowboys line. He passes the ball right to Morgan, who veers up and over towards the right hand side of the field with Broncos defenders coming up to him. He flicks the ball out one-handed to Kyle Feldt on the wing, who finds a gap out on the corner and scores as the full-time buzzer sounds. The crowd leap to their feet as millions of TV viewers discover what Sterlo sounds like when he jizzes his pants. But first of all- the video ref has to make this official. The replays confirm there is nothing wrong with Feldts grounding of the ball. Try! This game isnt done with yet. And I have a strange craving for fried chicken
80th minute: Now heres the issue- JT has to take the conversion attempt from out on the right touchline. If he sinks it, Cowboys are the Premiers. If he misses- extra time, and this last ditch, buzzer effort could be for nothing. The scenario feels all so typical- scripted almost. JT paces about, readying himself to take the most crucial kick of his career with the whole stadium buzzing. JT lines himself up and strikes the ball- its medium height and curling around on target- it hits the right post and bounces away. JTs reaction says it all. Were going to golden point- with every chance that the Cowboys could be ripped off again- but no NSW team in sight to blame it on.
EXTRA TIME: JT meets up with Justin Hodges (did anybody remember he was playing tonight?) in the middle of the field for the coin toss. JT wins the toss, and announces that the Cowboys will be kicking off.
81st minute: Kyle Feldt kick off, the ball sails through the air as the crowd tenses itself for a heart-pounding 10 minutes or less that will surely follow. Bracing himself for the catch is Ben Hunt. Hes fixated on the ball as it plummets towards him- it rolls out of his arms. Knock on! Cowboys fans leap to their feet, as Hunt drops to his knees, head buried. 6 tackles to NQ- 10 metres from their posts- and a field goal will win this for them.
82nd minute: The scrum packs down- then breaks. The ball goes to JT, but the Broncos defence swarms him before he can get a shot away. The next 3 tackles see the ball moved across field, with Coote making up metres on the right. Tamou takes a safe tackle. Then on the 4th, the ball is flicked straight back to JT. Like a shot, he drops it and strikes it- right through the posts. Cowboys fans leap up as JTs team-mates rush in to mob him. Cowboys win! Game over! In the background, Broncos players slump to the ground, forlornly. Ben Hunt wishes there was a tunnel from here to China that he could hide away in. Uncle Wayne is already thinking about his post-match grumble concerning golden point. Broncos fans are consoling themselves that they may have lost the battle, but they won the war. They tell this to the guy standing next to them who happens to be Jason Smith, but they don't recognise him. All over NSW, fans are jumping about ecstatically- yours truly is hugging strangers with tears in his eyes- we cant remember the last time we cheered on a Qld team like this since ever.
FULLTIME: Cowboys 17-16.
THE VERDICT: Im glad I watched this game again, because my live memories of it are a bit fuzzy (but thats another story). Watching it back again, this game resembles more than a few of the Origin slogs witnessed over the years. It was a dour, grim, defensive encounter. In some ways it reminded me of Origin 2 last year- the result of the match and the drought-breaking win was more memorable than most of the game as it actually played out. The wider League community should be forever thankful the Cowboys saved us from a dull, defensive end to the game where Bennett (channelling Warren Ryan in 89) seemed to think employing shut-down, slow-down tactics against a team with potential to score from anywhere on the park would be enough to win. To be fair, they came within a second of this tactic working. This game, however, was all about the last 5 minutes and the rapid-fire chain of events that took place. Most dramatic end to a Grand Final? Almost certainly. Best Grand Final ever? Watching it back again, it didnt feel like it. Perhaps Im biased, because (at the risk of sounding like Gus) I always had a feeling the Cowboys would score another try- I didnt think theyd leave it so late- but even as Kyle Feldt crossed the line, I remember thinking Woah- NOW? They left it until now to do it? For mine, this game highlighted the fact that golden point isnt the fairest way to determine a winner in such a high-stakes game as this one. It would have been truly riveting to see, with 20 minutes extra-time, if the Broncos could hit back with an answer to the Cowboys try at the death? Could Wayne Bennett- the master coach- formulate a counter-attack that would have seen the Broncos fight their way back and win? Or would the Cowboys (like the Raiders in their maiden Premiership) have been able to prove with another 20 minutes that they had the upper-hand and deserved the result, no questions, ifs or buts? After the amazing final 3 minutes of this game, it could have added a whole other chapter to the fairy tale. But this is all hypothetical now- and (like plenty of others) I was just thankful that the Cowboys walked away with the trophy. I honestly had Cowboys are my team! stuck in my head for a week afterwards!
