2008 North Queensland Cowboys season
The 2008 North Queensland Cowboys season was the 14th season in the club's history. They were coached by Graham Murray and captained by Johnathan Thurston, they competed in the National Rugby League's 2008 Telstra Premiership.
| 2008 North Queensland Cowboys season | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NRL Rank | 15th | |||
| Play-off result | Missed finals | |||
| 2008 record | Wins: 5; Draws: 0; Losses: 19 | |||
| Points scored | For: 474; Against: 638 | |||
| Team information | ||||
| CEO | Peter Parr | |||
| Coach | Graham Murray (Resigned on 19 May) Ian Millward (Interim) | |||
| Captain | ||||
| Stadium | Dairy Farmers Stadium | |||
| Avg. Attend. | 18,102 | |||
| High. Attend. | 24,332 (vs. Brisbane Broncos, Round 25) | |||
| Top scorers | ||||
| Tries | Ashley Graham (10) John Williams (10) | |||
| Goals | John Williams (96) | |||
| Points | Johnathan Thurston (39) | |||
| ||||
On 19 May, Murray resigned as head coach after just three wins from the opening 10 games. He was replaced by assistant coach Ian Millward, who took over as interim head coach until the end of the season. The Cowboys finished the season in 15th place, avoiding the wooden spoon by points differential.
Season summary
The Cowboys entered the 2008 season optimistic about the finals chances after a preliminary final appearance in 2007. The club got off to the worst possible start, losing three straight games. They would win their next three but it proved to be a false dawn, as the side went on a club record 13-game losing streak. They finished the season with two wins from their final five games, finishing in 15th place and narrowly avoiding the wooden spoon. The season was plagued by injury, with key players Matthew Bowen, Luke O'Donnell, Matthew Scott and Johnathan Thurston all missing considerable playing time due to injuries.
On April 2, the Cowboys signed former assistant coach and then-Canberra Raiders coach Neil Henry as their head coach for the 2009 season.[1] A month later, Graham Murray re-signed as head coach and was replaced by his assistant Ian Millward as interim head coach for the rest of 2008. Millward's first win as head coach occurred in Round 22, as the Cowboys defeated the Canterbury Bulldogs 36-12 at Suncorp Stadium.
Despite the poor season, the club still maintained the fourth highest home crowd average in the NRL with an average of 18,102.
Milestones
- Round 1: Matthew Scott played his 50th game for the club.
- Round 1: Travis Burns and Ben Harris made their debuts for the club.
- Round 2: Dayne Weston made his debut for the club.
- Round 2: Obe Geia made his NRL debut.
- Round 4: Anthony Watts and John Williams made their debuts for the club.
- Round 8: Daniel Abraham made his debut for the club.
- Round 14: Nick Slyney made his NRL debut.
- Round 15: Greg Byrnes made his NRL debut.
- Round 16: Ashley Graham played his 50th game for the club.
- Round 16: Brandon Boor and Sam Bowie made their NRL debuts.
- Round 19: Luke Harlen made his debut for the club.
- Round 21: The club recorded their longest losing streak with their 13th straight loss.
- Round 22: Ray Cashmere played his 50th game for the club.
- Round 25: Shane Tronc played his 100th game for the club.
Squad List
| First team squad | Coaching staff | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Head coach
Assistant coaches
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Squad Movement
2008 Gains
| Player | Signed From | Until End of |
|---|---|---|
| Daniel Abraham |  Newcastle Knights | |
| Travis Burns |  Manly Sea Eagles | |
| George Gatis |  Huddersfield Giants (mid-season) | |
| Ben Harris |  Bradford Bulls | |
| Chris Sheppard |  Northern Pride (mid-season) | |
| Anthony Perkins |  Melbourne Storm | |
| Anthony Watts |  Cronulla Sharks | |
| Dayne Weston | Cronulla Sharks | |
| John Williams |  Sydney Roosters |
2008 Losses
| Player | Signed To | Until End of |
|---|---|---|
| Brett Anderson | Melbourne Storm | |
| Brenton Bowen |  Gold Coast Titans | |
| Paul Bowman | Retired | |
| David Faiumu | Huddersfield Giants (mid-season) | |
| Rod Jensen | Huddersfield Giants | |
| Karl Johnson | Newcastle Knights | |
| Scott Minto | Retired | |
| Shane Muspratt |  Mackay Cutters | |
| Jason Smith | Retired | |
| Neil Sweeney | Newcastle Knights | |
| Colin Wilkie | Released |
Ladder
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | B | PF | PA | PD | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Melbourne |
24 | 17 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 584 | 282 | +302 | 38 |
| 2 | Manly-Warringah |
24 | 17 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 645 | 355 | +290 | 38 |
| 3 | Cronulla |
24 | 17 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 451 | 384 | +67 | 38 |
| 4 | Sydney Roosters |
24 | 15 | 0 | 9 | 2 | 511 | 446 | +65 | 34 |
| 5 |  Brisbane |
24 | 14 | 1 | 9 | 2 | 560 | 452 | +108 | 33 |
| 6 |  Canberra |
24 | 13 | 0 | 11 | 2 | 640 | 527 | +113 | 30 |
| 7 |  St. George Illawarra |
24 | 13 | 0 | 11 | 2 | 489 | 378 | +111 | 30 |
| 8 |  New Zealand |
24 | 13 | 0 | 11 | 2 | 502 | 567 | -65 | 30 |
| 9 | Newcastle |
24 | 12 | 0 | 12 | 2 | 516 | 486 | +30 | 28 |
| 10 |  Wests Tigers |
24 | 11 | 0 | 13 | 2 | 528 | 560 | -32 | 26 |
| 11 |  Parramatta |
24 | 11 | 0 | 13 | 2 | 501 | 547 | -46 | 26 |
| 12 |  Penrith |
24 | 10 | 1 | 13 | 2 | 504 | 611 | -107 | 25 |
| 13 | Gold Coast |
24 | 10 | 0 | 14 | 2 | 476 | 586 | -110 | 24 |
| 14 |  South Sydney |
24 | 8 | 0 | 16 | 2 | 453 | 666 | -213 | 20 |
| 15 |  North Queensland |
24 | 5 | 0 | 19 | 2 | 474 | 638 | -164 | 14 |
| 16 |  Bulldogs |
24 | 5 | 0 | 19 | 2 | 433 | 782 | -349 | 14 |
Fixtures
Pre-season
| Date | Round | Opponent | Venue | Score | Tries | Goals | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 February | Trial 1 | Brisbane Broncos | Browne Park | 10 – 20 | Nicolau, Thompson | Nicolau (1/2) | - |
| 23 February | Trial 2 | Gold Coast Titans | Barlow Park | 22 – 30 | Webb (2), Faust, T Williams | Graham (3/4) | - |
| 1 March | Trial 3 | Canberra Raiders | Dairy Farmers Stadium | 32 – 12 | O'Donnell (3), Bowen, Southern, Webb | Graham (3/4), Burns (1/2) | - |
Regular season
Statistics
| Name | App | T | G | FG | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daniel Abraham | 6 | 1 | - | - | 4 |
| Matthew Bartlett | 6 | 1 | - | - | 4 |
| Scott Bolton | 4 | - | - | - | - |
| Brandon Boor | 2 | - | - | - | - |
| Matthew Bowen | 6 | 3 | - | - | 12 |
| Sam Bowie | 1 | - | - | - | - |
| Travis Burns | 14 | 3 | - | - | 12 |
| Greg Byrnes | 3 | - | - | - | - |
| Ray Cashmere | 24 | 3 | - | - | 12 |
| David Faiumu | 4 | - | - | - | - |
| Ben Farrar | 18 | 3 | - | - | 12 |
| Sione Faumuina | 14 | 1 | - | - | 4 |
| Sam Faust | 10 | - | - | - | - |
| George Gatis | 1 | - | - | - | - |
| Obe Geia | 2 | - | - | - | - |
| Ashley Graham | 22 | 10 | - | - | 40 |
| Luke Harlen | 5 | - | - | - | - |
| Ben Harris | 24 | 7 | - | - | 28 |
| Mark Henry | 23 | 5 | - | - | 20 |
| Jacob Lillyman | 11 | 1 | - | - | 4 |
| Jackson Nicolau | 1 | - | - | - | - |
| Luke O'Donnell | 15 | 5 | - | - | 20 |
| Aaron Payne | 24 | 1 | - | - | 4 |
| Matthew Scott | 6 | 1 | - | - | 4 |
| Chris Sheppard | 1 | - | - | - | - |
| Nick Slyney | 2 | 1 | - | - | 4 |
| Justin Smith | 11 | 3 | - | - | 12 |
| Steve Southern | 18 | 2 | - | - | 8 |
| Johnathan Thurston | 17 | 4 | 39 | - | 94 |
| Shane Tronc | 18 | 2 | - | - | 8 |
| Ben Vaeau | 11 | 1 | - | - | 4 |
| Anthony Watts | 12 | 2 | - | - | 8 |
| Carl Webb | 21 | 6 | - | - | 24 |
| Dayne Weston | 19 | 2 | - | - | 8 |
| John Williams | 20 | 10 | 28 | - | 96 |
| Ty Williams | 12 | 7 | - | - | 28 |
| Totals | 85 | 67 | 0 | 474 |
Source:[2]
Representatives
The following players have played a representative match in 2008
| City vs Country | ANZAC Test | State of Origin 1 | State of Origin 2 | State of Origin 3 | Prime Minister's XIII | Indigenous v Māori | World Cup | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ray Cashmere | ||||||||
| Ben Harris | ||||||||
| Jacob Lillyman | ||||||||
| Luke O'Donnell | ||||||||
| Johnathan Thurston | ||||||||
| Carl Webb | ||||||||
| Ty Williams |
Honours
League
- Wally Lewis Medal: Johnathan Thurston
Club
- Paul Bowman Medal: Aaron Payne
- Player's Player: Aaron Payne
- Club Person of the Year: Aaron Payne
- Rookie of the Year: Nick Slyney
- Most Improved: Brandon Boor
- NYC Player of the Year: Nick Slyney
Feeder Clubs
National Youth Competition
- North Queensland Cowboys - 16th, Wooden Spoon
Queensland Cup
- Mackay Cutters - 9th, missed finals
- Northern Pride - 3rd, lost preliminary final