North Queensland Cowboys

With Chad Townsend and Tom Dearden clicking in the halves, Murray Taulagi and Val Holmes on fire out wide, and Reuben Cotter playing out of his skin up front, North Queensland look every bit a premiership contender - a remarkable turnaround for a side that finished 15th in 2021.

The Storm did it tough without Ryan Papenhuyzen and Jahrome Hughes against the Panthers but Craig Bellamy's men rarely put two below-par performances back-to-back so Todd Payten's men need to be on high alert.

The last time the Cowboys won five in a row was early in 2016, in the midst of a golden era for the club which included their maiden premiership in 2015 and a grand final appearance in 2017.

The game opened in spectacular fashion with Murray Taulagi setting up a try for Scott Drinkwater with an outrageous flick pass as he was being bundled over the sidelined before Wests Tigers debutant Junior Tupou flew high to snare a Jackson Hastings bomb to score the first try of his career.

The final match of the special event wraps up round 10 with the Cowboys looking to extend their winning run against a Wests Tigers side that have taken a few steps backwards in recent weeks after putting two wins together.

The joint venture, however, enjoy Magic Round more than their opponents.

They've beaten the Knights and Panthers in the past two concepts and despite the Cowboys well-placed on the ladder, the Tigers have shown they can spring an upset. 

North Queensland are now in third position behind Penrith and Melbourne after overcoming an injury hit Newcastle side in hot and humid conditions at QCB Stadium.

Halfback Chad Townsend produced four try assists from kicks, with teenage second-rower Jeremiah Nanai among the beneficiaries in a stunning performance that showed why he is so highly regarded by Cowboys coach Todd Payten.

North Queensland have been the surprise packets of the 2022 season so far with halves Chad Townsend and Tom Dearden clicking behind a forward pack led by Cowboys powerhouse Jason Taumalolo, who has found his groove. 

Newcastle are reeling after heavy back-to-back defeats on home turf and on the back of a six-game losing streak, they now find themselves on the bottom of the ladder.

With Reuben Cotter and Reece Robson tackling themselves to a standstill and Feldt snaring the fourth hat-trick of his career the Cowboys ensured Chad Townsend would celebrate his 200th NRL game in style.

The Cowboys opened the scoring through a Val Holmes penalty goal in the 17th minute and produced some strong defence to keep the Eels at bay before grabbing the first try of the night through Feldt.

Feldt's try came courtesy of a great long ball by Scott Drinkwater and took Todd Payten's men out to an 8-0 lead.

The Eels shook off both their shocking backline injury toll and a scrappy Easter Monday loss to Wests Tigers to put together a hugely disciplined and professional 80 minutes against the Knights.

Meanwhile this year's surprise packets the Cowboys continue to impress, proving far too strong for a disappointing Titans outfit in Anzac Round.

Down 12-0 at the break in the national capital the Cowboys looked like being steamrolled by the Green Machine but instead they dug deep and produced three qualtiy tries to stun the Raiders and their coach.

The Titans were in it all the way at 4 Pines Park and finished four tries apiece woth Manly but Toby Sexton's radar deserted him and it was another case of 'what might have been' for Justin Holbrook.

The Raiders cracked the Cowboys at the first opportunity, with Tom Starling darting through a huge hole to cross under the posts untouched just three minutes into the contest. 

Jordan Rapana crossed in the 15th minute off a lovely Corey Harawira-Naera tap-on and it could have been an ugly scorecard had Elliott Whitehead not spilled an attacking Jack Wighton grubber in the Cowboys' in-goal 10 minutes after that. 

Such are the vagaries of the draw that they are meeting for the second time inside the first six weeks, the Cowboys proving far too strong in Townsville in round two.

The Cowboys are coming off a golden point heartbreaker against the Warriors while the Raiders were run ragged by a potent Storm outfit 30-16, the fourth game in a row they have conceded more than 20 points.

Defence is sure to be a key focus for Ricky Stuart this week as the Raiders look to put the clamps on a dangerous Cowboys side capable of producing some scintillating attack on their day.