NORTH QUEENSLAND v. SOUTH QUEENSLAND
South Queensland 3.2, 7.3, 8.5, 12.8 (80)
North Queensland 0.1, 1.3, 3.8, 5.11 (41)
South Queensland are on the board in their rivalry with North Queensland, thanks to a 39-point win at Cazaly’s Stadium on Saturday.
The intensity of the game was through the roof, it was a pressure cooker in the middle, and both sides were desperate to represent their region with pride.
SQ came out firing in the first quarter, really controlling the tempo of the contest in the middle.
Their three unanswered goals before quarter time showed this was no holiday for the team, they meant business.
The second quarter saw the sun set in Cairns, but the SQ heat turned right up.
Their four goal to one quarter was set up through Daniel Dzufer down back, who was the general all evening, and the tall targets of Ben Merret and Boyd up forward.
NQ needed to reset at the main break, tweak the game plan, and bring their runners into the game.
They responded in the third, taking it right up to the visitors, linking up well from the half-back line, and impacting the scoreboard.
They made it a 27-point game at the final change, breathing life back into the contest.
But it was the sure heads of the Southerners steadied the ship in the last.
Jake De Winter kicked three clutch goals, and took an absolute screamer standing on his opponents shoulders on the flank, in a superb 20-minute patch.
South Queensland’s four goals to two in the final term put the game in the books. The cup was heading south for the first time in three years.
Daniel Dzufer was awarded the Ron Davidson Medal for the best South Queensland player, while Jack Philp took out the Wayne Jackson Medal for the best North Queensland player.
Chapter three was a cracker, and we are already looking forward to chapter four.
GOALS
South Queensland : J. De Winter 4, G. Boyd 3, E. Burrows-Cheng 2, J. Ryan 1, J. Bacon 1, B. Merrett 1
North Queensland : A. Mcnab 2, K. Chapple 1, C. Gauci 1, J. Mawson 1
By Andrew Wiles
Follow @andrewjwiles
