Broncos to wear unfamiliar underdog tag
TEN years ago Brisbane headed to Townsville for an elimination final against North Queensland after coach Wayne Bennett convinced officials to move the game from Sydney rather than play to an empty house.
It wasn’t a gamble by Bennett.
The Broncos had played the Cowboys 16 times for 16 wins.
But by the end of 80 minutes a disciplined underdog Cowboys side had kept its try-line in tact, bundling the Broncos out of the finals 10-0 in an historic game for North Queensland.
This time around it’s the Cowboys who hold the upper hand.
They’ve won their past 10 games at 1300SMILES Stadium and their past seven in a row against Brisbane, which received a stay of execution at the weekend after Parra- matta and the Warriors lost their the final-round games.
Veteran big-game player Justin Hodges admits he is expecting to be bombed by his Queensland Origin teammate Johnathan Thurston but adds he is looking forward to the challenge given the winner-takes-all stakes.
There’s speculation Josh Hoffman may make a shock return from injury but Hodges is preparing for an aerial attack from Thurston after Melbourne marksman Cooper Cronk exposed some flaws in his technique under the high ball last weekend.
Even Hodges conceded he needed to get his act together better under the bomb but felt his positional play was getting better with each game in the No.1, where he hasn’t played since 2006.
“That’s part of football. I will try to do the best I can,” Hodges (pictured) said.
“If a high ball goes up, I have to take it with both hands. If they aren’t chasing in the front line, it gives me a chance to attack as well.”
Thurston knows how dangerous Hodges can be in broken play and is well aware the Broncos have been given a second chance.
“They’ve got the runs on the board, they’ve got strike power and on their day they can beat anyone,” the Cowboys co-captain said.