WARWICK COWBOYS
LAST YEAR
12-4, semi finalists
INS AND OUTS
IN: Sam Broomhall (overseas), Brodie Quirk (return from injury), Brook Croft (returning from layoff), Mitch McMahon (return from injury), Hayden Raumati (Parkes)
OUT: Darren Pettiford (retirement), Garry Ellery (Sunshine Coast), David McGrady (Goondiwindi)
LIKELY TEAM
1. Craig Donn 2 Brodie Quirk 3. Joe Fuimaono 4. Dylan Galloway 5. Mitchell Watson 6. Coedie Tandy 7. Paul Cantwell 8. Jarred Bradfield 9. Ben Sullivan 10. Brook Croft 11. Josh Cruice 12. Michael Bloomfield 13. Sam Broomhall
14. Cody Byrne 15. Mitch McMahon 16. Kieran Fender
17. Harry Sullivan
THE YEAR AHEAD
Could the Cowboys’ time be now?
They were around the mark last year, and again field a team they are confident in, as well as getting crucial numbers on the paddock.
“We’ve had a good off-season and had good numbers there for us as well,” coach Matt Grew said.
“We never have an issue with U18s, but sometimes we struggle getting seniors to training, but this year we’ve done really well and had between 20 and 30 there every Thursday.”
The addition of Sam Broomhall is a big bonus, and Grew believes he can be a leader in a classy pack of forwards.
“Sam injects a fair bit of experience, especially for our younger middle men. They will learn a lot if they pay attention to what he says,” he said.
“Jarred (Bradfield) is another that has come back fitter and stronger.
“It’s hard to replace guys like Garry (Ellery) and Darren (Pettiford) but we’ve gone a long way about trying to.
“We always have a goal of making the top five, but we hope to make the top three to give ourselves two cracks at the finals.”
PLAYER TO WATCH
Mitch Watson. “He played last year on the wing and has had a run with the Clydesdales in the off-season,” Grew said. “He brings a lot of experience and confidence, and is a player of the future. I think he has a big future in the TRL, if not at a higher level.”
VERDICT
Another side that has been hurt by player departures, the Cowboys will be relying on their game-breakers to get the job done in 2019. Sam Broomhall is a big signing to offset the huge losses of big men Garry Ellery and Darren Pettiford. They will again have a strong forward pack that will win them a number of games.
FIFTH