They may be sitting 10 rungs lower on the ladder than this time last year but Cowboys veteran Jake Granville has seen enough in the past two weeks to convince him a finals berth is well and truly within grasp.
A rollercoaster season that began with five losses in their first seven games and hit an embarrassing low in a 66-18 loss to Wests Tigers in Round 12 has been given the kiss of life with wins over big guns Melbourne and Penrith, and Glanville said the positive vibes are coursing through the club.
Currently in 13th spot with a 7-8 record, last year’s preliminary finalists are just one game behind the eighth-placed Eels, with games against the Rabbitohs and Tigers to come ahead of their second bye.
“I think we are definitely still in the top eight picture - the competitive drive is there and if we can keep that there is no reason we can’t make the finals,” Granville told media on Wednesday.
“It was good to see the boys dig deep and get a win like that [against Panthers].
“To see us finish the game that way, that effort, I see the care for each other in the last few games within the playing group.
Crazy Finishes: Cowboys v Panthers - Round 16, 2023
“Even when we lost to the Eels the week after the Tigers loss, we made some good steps in the right direction.”
Having steadied the ship with four wins from their past six games, the Cowboys now set their sights on Sunday’s showdown against the Rabbitohs, although the make-up of both sides is up in the air until a final decision is made on which Origin stars back up.
The Cowboys have Val Holmes, Murray Taulagi, Jeremiah Nanai, Tom Dearden, Reuben Cotter and Reece Robson in an extended squad while the Rabbitohs are sweating on Damien Cook and Cameron Murray coming through Origin II unscathed.
With Robson in Blues camp, Granville reprised his role as a starting No.9 against the Panthers, playing the full 89 minutes and making 53 tackles in the golden point thriller.
As the man who played hooker in North Queensland’s 2015 premiership side, Granville was happy to do whatever his team needed and he’ll gladly rip in again on Sunday should Robson need a break after his Origin debut.
“I’m open to anything the boys or the coaching staff throw at me but Robbo does such an awesome job for us and he deserves everything he gets,” said Granville.
“It’s a tough position, I haven’t played there in a while, but I just tried to simplify it and I enjoyed it.
Top shelf Dearden
“We didn’t have the Origin guys last week so if they don’t back up everyone is comfortable because we did it against Penrith.
“Everyone knows whoever steps up will do their job and that’s what we expect of each other.
“If some of the boys do back up from Origin they get a bit more of a break with our game being on Sunday so we’re lucky there.”
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