Canberra Raiders v North Queensland Cowboys
Round 13, 2011
Canberra Stadium


The Cowboys staged a remarkable comeback to run away with the contest 40-24 in Canberra in Round 13 last year – in the game that Terry Campese added his sole 10 minutes of game time in 2012 before succumbing to a groin injury.

Remarkably the Raiders scored four tries in the opening 21 minutes for a 22-nil lead that had some Cowboys’ fans filing for the exits – but then the Raiders lost fullback Josh Dugan to injury (26th minute) and the visitors exploded to life. First Johnathan Thurston dummied his way over on the left edge, then Glenn Hall ran through Campese, whose groin gave way as he attempted to tackle Hall on his try line.

Tries to Tariq Sims either side of halftime saw the Cowboys draw level at 22-all before a Jarrod Croker penalty goal edged the home side ahead with 14 minutes to play. But a poor last-tackle option from the Raiders saw Thurston swoop on an errant ball and send Kalifa Faifai Loa away for a long-distance try that broke their backs. Faifai Loa rubbed salt into the wounds with two more tries in the dying minutes.

The Raiders really missed Dugan, who set up two tries before his injury. They were also well served by prop Brett White who added 165 metres.

Tariq Sims was the standout for the Cowboys with a try double and a try assist plus 126 metres, three line-breaks and eight tackle busts.