COWBOYS LACKING EXECUTION
INEXPERIENCE COSTS RESILIENT COWBOYS
MICHAEL Morgan has marked this Sunday’s clash against the Titans in his calendar as his return date from injury and the Cowboys desperately need him to be right.
The North Queensland side has added an impressive starch to their defence under interim coach Josh Hannay. Their resilience and effort was on full display in a willing showing against the Raiders.
But it is the side’s lack of execution and smarts with the ball in hand that let them down, as they failed to mount any pressure on a wilting Raiders defence.
Hannay was left torn after the 14-12 loss, and has demanded the Cowboys inexperienced players grow up and do their job in the tough times.
MICHAEL Morgan’s expected return against the Titans this week could not come sooner for the Cowboys. While they have shown a new-found defensive resilience under interim coach Josh Hannay, the side has lacked a calm head pulling the strings at the opposite end of the field.
It was evident in Saturday’s gruelling two-point loss to the Raiders, with the Cowboys’ inexperienced men in the middle looking for the trick play try rather than mounting pressure.
When there was opportunity to put the ball into the in-goal and earn a repeat set, young halfback Jake Clifford failed to find the grass. It was an inexperience in the highpressure moments that left Hannay torn after the game. “Our young guys are learning about pressure and how to create it, how to keep it and how to capitalise on it,” Hannay said.
“I think even in the first half there was a couple of times we kicked on tackle two or three. Robbo (Reece Robson) got out of dummy half, kicked early because nothing was on. He kicked because he saw the gap closed. Cliffo did it not long afterwards.
“Their intentions are right, they are not trying to let the team down. But that flowed right throughout our game. “I could see a tired Raiders outfit out there who were hanging by a thread. Rather than having one set down there, we should have had two or three to capitalise on the opportunity and land that knockout blow. We just don’t understand that at the moment as a football side.
“We saw signs of a type of team that I want to see out there but we just keep shooting ourselves in the foot. One part of me is immensely proud but the other is immensely frustrated and angry.”
It has been a tough road for Clifford. The young half was initially overlooked to start the season with former coach Paul Green opting for Morgan and Scott Drinkwater.
But a shoulder injury for Morgan has thrust him into the starting side each week and left him with the job of guiding the team in the crunch moments.
He has yet to find a stable partner, with Ben Hampton the third player to partner Clifford in the halves since the league returned from the coronavirus break.
While the 22-year-old halfback has shown glimpses of brilliance, consistency has let him down.
“At some point as a footballer, no matter what level of experience you are, you need to grow up and you need to do your job in big moments particularly,” Hannay said.
“It is three weeks straight I would say our effort has been first class, but also three weeks straight I think inexperience (has let us down). There was some big moments where some of our younger players just didn’t do their job. ”
The Cowboys can take solace in their effort plays though, especially during a five-minute stint late in the game when they were down to 12 men after John Asiata left the field with a knee injury.
A try-saving bootlaces tackle from Hampton epitomised their resilience.
“There was a group of Cowboys out there that defended in a manner that I haven’t seen in a long time,” Hannay said.
“We defended our line with 12 men and there has been times this year where we haven’t shown a capacity to defend it with 13. So defensively we were enormous.
“To a point when it was time to capitalise on that good defensive work and put them away with some good football, we lacked quality and class and experience.”
The full extent of Asiata’s injury is unknown after the forward made his way back on the field, albeit with a heavily strapped knee.
We saw signs of a type of team we want to be out there
JOSH HANNAY