Cowboys winger keen to make opponents fear ‘fortress’ visit
KYLE Feldt has called on the NRL to deliver games to Queensland Country Bank Stadium early in the season as the governing body works on the foundations of a draw for the remainder of 2020.
The NRL has only mapped out the first two weeks of the season, and has yet to confirm the venues of those clashes, with opportunity to squeeze more games in at the $293.5 million facility.
The Cowboys played only one game in the stadium before the COVID-19 shutdown, going down to Brisbane.
That loss lit a fire in the Cowboys’ belly, and is the main reason Feldt is keen to get back into the stadium.
“With only one game at our new stadium we’re hoping to get a couple of games up here at the start and get a feel for the stadium,” Feldt said.
“I think the way we started the year, especially at our new home, we really want to make it a fortress and we didn’t go about that.”
The Cowboys have yet to book travel arrangements for the season, but with the highest travel toll in the league this season – following the Warriors’ arrival in New South Wales – the club hopes to lock in a game plan as soon as possible.
The Cowboys are expected to only travel on game day on chartered flights, which will raise alarm bells for sides who embark on longer routes.
News Corp revealed last week that Cowboys director of football Peter Parr had asked for the NRL to consider the club for only night-time games, as opposed to afternoon matches where time could be against the Townsville-based unit.
Feldt believed this was a fair enough request, given they would need time to prepare at the game-day venue.
“It’s not really much of a difference (playing in afternoon), we’re all professionals up here. I think Parrie hit the nail on the head with time to recover from such a big flight,” he said.
“We need time to recover but I think the NRL is pretty smart about those decisions.”
Should such a scenario take shape, the 28-year-old said the loss of afternoon fixtures would not have an impact on the way the team performed.
Isolation training had begun to wear thin on Feldt, so last week’s return to Cowboys
HQ was met with euphoria.
Now it feels like rugby league – back around his teammates and working towards a 2020 title push.
Feldt said the lay-off could eventuate in a higher standard of football when the season resumes, as players across the competition wait in anticipation to get back on the field.
“I really missed the camaraderie – it’s been a bit tough not coming into training every day and seeing the boys,” Feldt said.
“I think that’s going to be the best part about this whole isolation stuff – getting back into footy is something we’ve all been working for, so come round three we’ll be chomping at the bit.
“I think everyone is pretty happy we’re not doing full contact yet … I know we enjoy it in a game but in training we don’t want to hurt each other – being a winger I don’t like it.”
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