Arrow set to target Cowboys’ colossus
JASON Taumalolo is a runaway freight train, but one Gold Coast forward reckons he has found the way to combat him.
Titans lock Jai Arrow has revealed his plan of attack to stop the rampaging Cowboy ahead of an epic contest between opposing No. 13s in Townsville on Friday night.
Arrow and Taumalolo are expected to be named at lock for their respective sides.
Taumalolo will aim to continue his dominant start to the year after he broke the NRL record for most run metres by a forward during a match (318m) in the Cowboys’ Round 2 win over the Bulldogs.
According to Fox Sports Lab, the 26-year-old averaged more than 200m in both games against the Titans last year, scoring a try in each one and busting 12 tackles.
Arrow said he was wary of his opposition number this week but that he was preparing to tire out the Tongan tearaway.
“He’s the best middle forward in the game, has been for many years now, and he’s a strike wherever he’s playing,” Arrow said.
“He’s someone we’re going to have to get numbers in and hopefully control the ruck and control him because he’s a damaging player.
“He can score 40m runaway tries so we’re going to have to get numbers in, make sure we’re dominating the ruck.
“They’re a big forward pack so fatigue can get to them. Taumalolo and Jordan Mclean, hopefully we get them off (to the bench to rest) as soon as possible.”
But it won’t be that easy for the Titans pack, with Fox Sports Lab stats suggesting the Cowboys’ 117kg wrecking ball has continued to average increased minutes since the club’s
2017.
Across the first two games of this season Taumalolo has averaged an incredible 11 more minutes on the field compared with last season.
While he has been referred to as the best forward in the game, Cowboys teammate Kyle Feldt said last week it had almost become an expecpremiership win in tation each game. “Every game he turns up he could run for 300 metres, the next game he could run for 250 so he’s really consistent like that,” Feldt said.
“He’s just a professional the way he goes about his business. This year’s no different to any other year, he’s always going to come out all guns blazing. This year es
Taumalolo’s averages since 2015 premiership*.
Minutes: 72
Runs: 20
Run Metres: 243m Tackle Busts: 5.5
Minutes: 61
Runs: 17.6
Run Metres: 183m Tackle Busts: 3.83
Minutes: 63
Runs: 17.4
Run Metres: 177m Tackle Busts: 3.87
Minutes: 62
Runs: 17.9
Run Metres: 194m Tackle Busts: 4.65
Minutes: 52
Runs: 15.3
Run Metres: 166m Tackle Busts: 2.78
*Stats courtesy of Fox Sports Lab. pecially having that little bit of time off at the start of the year he’s going to be that little bit more fresher coming into the middle part of the year and the back end.
“He’ll probably be a bit more consistent this year and that’s going to be good for us.”
Front rower Mclean is expected to be named captain for the Cowboys when the teams are released today with Michael Morgan expected to miss the first four weeks of the season restart following shoulder surgery in the break.
As part of the NRL’S strict biosecurity guidelines, the Gold Coast squad will fly a chartered flight to Townsville on Friday morning before flying home immediately after the game.