The Cowboys have kept their finals hopes alive with a 34-10 win over the Dolphins at Suncorp Stadium on Friday night.
Needing to win their final two games and hope other results go their way, Todd Payten's men took care of the first part of the equation with a polished six-try display in front of 33,449 fans in Brisbane.
The Cowboys grabbed the first try of the night in the 11th minute when Dolphins fullback Jamayne Isaako spilled a bomb and the ball came down to Tom Dearden who spun it wide for Zac Laybutt to race away and score.
Four minutes later the Cowboys had a second when Kyle Feldt crossed for the 128th try of his career to close within two of Matt Bowen's club record of 130.
Dearden stamped his class on the contest in the 17th minute when he delivered a superb cut-out pass to Murray Taulagi down the short side and the winger found Scott Drinkwater backing up for an 18-0 lead.
Scott Drinkwater Try
The Dolphins looked set to hit back on the half hour mark when Kenny Bromwich got over the line but Drinkwater was able to knock the ball loose as he tried to get it down.
With Dolphins prop Josh Kerr in the sin bin for a hip drop tackle the Cowboys took advantage of the extra man as Drinkwater delivered a precise pass to Laybutt who crossed for his second of the night.
The Cowboys should have had their fifth try early in the second half after Heilum Luki found himself in open space and linked with Feldt but the winger's pass went astray when he tried to find support.
The Cowboys can't get there
After hanging tough for 16 minutes in the second half the Dolphins finally cracked when Dearden cut out two players and found Taulagi who strolled over to make it 28-0 to North Queensland.
With 17 minutes to play Isaako grabbed his 22nd try of the season when he latched onto a sweet pass from Nikorima and raced away to make it 28-6.
The Dolphins' joy was short lived as Cowboys veteran Peta Hiku hit back three minutes later with a try in his 200th NRL game courtesy of a brilliant flick pass from youngster Kulikefu Finefeuiaki.
Some slick hands from the Dolphins created space for Isaako to make it a double in the 72nd minute as Wayne Bennett's men pushed the Cowboys right to the end.
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Match Snapshot
- Dolphins winger Jamayne Isaako has set a new record for most points scored for a new club in its first season. The record was held by Joel Caine, who scored 224 points in the Wests Tigers' first season in 2000. Isaako's tally now stands at 230 points with one game to go. Isaako ran for 271 metres and had eight tackle breaks for the night.
- Dolphins prop Josh Kerr was placed on report and sent to the sin bin in the 28th minute for a hip drop tackle on Murray Taulagi.
- Cowboys centre Zac Laybutt went on report in the 33rd minute for a dangerous tackle on Jamayne Isaako, who was sent for a HIA after landing heavily. Isaako passed the HIA and returned for the second half.
- The Cowboys have joined the Rabbitohs on 30 competition points. The Cowboys' differential is +36 and the Rabbitohs are on +73.
- Cowboys pair Peta Hiku and Jordan McLean played their 200th NRL games.
Zac Laybutt Try
- The Dolphins threw in a successful captain's challenge in the 48th minute when referee Gerard Sutton ruled Josh Kerr had knocked on but the bunker ruled the ball was passed backwards.
- Murray Taulagi had a night out with 219 run metres for the Cowboys while Kyle Feldt ran for 225 metres.
- Dolphins centre Tesi Niu had nine tackle breaks to go with 151 run metres.
- The Dolphins have won only one of their past 11 games.
- Dolphins five-eighth Kodi Nikorima produced a 40-20 kick in the 22nd minute.
Kerr sent to the bin
Play of the Game
The Cowboys' attack clicked into gear with four first-half tries but it's the desperation defence from Tom Dearden and Zac Laybutt that would have impressed coach Todd Payten most. Down 18-0, the Dolphins seemed certain to post their first try when a sweeping right side raid found Jamayne Isaako in space but Dearden showed great strength to hold him up before Laybutt came in to add his weight to the tackle and the Cowboys kept their line intact.
Dearden desperate in defence
What They Said
"I was really pleased with how we handled the pressure through the week and started the game 14 from 14 sets, got a couple of tries to get to 18-0 but then I thought we lost our way through the sin binning [of Dolphins prop Josh Kerr]. The second half we bombed a couple of tries but we did enough to win and that's what we came down to do and I'm happy to walk away with two points. If we play finals we'll deserve it, because we have to play Penrith next week and we'll have to find another gear." - Cowboys coach Todd Payten
Cowboys: Round 26
“I will say this about these guys about their ability to fight and keep going, 24-nil and coming in at half-time there, it was a pretty tough time for them because it was going all against them, but just their ability to play for each other got us through that second half, otherwise we'd probably get beaten by 60-odd points. It's a great credit to them that they have continually shown that. That's the thing that gives me confidence about our future, plus the ability for us to recruit new players as well and build up our squad.” - Dolphins coach Wayne Bennett
Dolphins: Round 26
What's Next
The Dolphins bring the curtain down on their debut season with a clash against the Warriors at Suncorp Stadium while the Cowboys face a daunting assignment against the Panthers at BlueBet Stadium.