• Javid Bowen will get his first shot at senior representative football after being named in the Queensland Residents squad to face NSW Residents as the main curtain-raiser to the third State of Origin match next week. In his first year out of the NYC under-20s, Bowen has been a big factor in the Northern Pride’s dominant run through the first four months of the Intrust Super Cup season. He’s split his time between wing and centre and has been named on the wing for the Residents squad which includes fellow Pride players Davin Crampton, Ben Spina, Shaun Nona and Blake Leary. The other Cowboy to be called up was front-rower Sam Hoare, who also played for Qld Residents last year and this season brought up 50 ISC appearances for the Mackay.
• The Cowboys have released Tariq Sims from the final year of his current contract. He will continue to play for NQ for the rest of the 2014 season with the goal of finishing his four years with the club on a high. Since joining the Cowboys from Brisbane fresh out of the NYC competition, Tariq has played 62 NRL matches, five Tests for Fiji and three Country Origin games.
• It’s taken until round 17, but the NYC Cowboys have finally scored a Fox Sports game this weekend. You’ll be able to see our under-20s in action against the Dragons at 12.40pm on Saturday.
• Our stats leaders from the great win against the Rabbitohs on Saturday night were: most metres – James Tamou (178m); most tackles – Tariq Sims (35); most tackle breaks – Tariq Sims (5); most offloads – Kane Linnett (2); most linebreaks – Tariq Sims (2).
• The new horse in Aaron Payne’s stable, Wine By The Glass, put up a bold showing before finishing third in the Cowboys Leagues Club Handicap at the inaugural Cowboys/Brisclean Race Day on Sunday. She's known around the stables as Rona, because she reminds Payney of the lanky Cowboys winger. “I had an each-way bet on her so I got my money back. That’s not a bad result,” Rona said. “I’ll definitely keep following her.”
• Cowboys Origin duo Johnathan Thurston and James Tamou made the NRL.com Team of the Week for round 16. Ashton Sims can consider himself very unlucky not to make it because he came up with some huge plays on Saturday night.
• Kyle Feldt continues to produce some magic moments with his boot. Already with a 90-metre dropout to his name this season, Feldty produced a kick off that Channel Nine caller Matt Thompson described as “the highest kick off I’ve ever seen” in the Northern Pride’s match against the PNG Hunters on Sunday.
• Former Cowboy Matt Sing was back in Townsville in a coaching role at the weekend. The former Test and Origin winger was with the Capricorn Coast Brothers who contested the Laurie Spina Shield, presented by Guildford Coal. They won four of their six pool matches but missed out on the quarter-finals.
• Also spotted at our game on Saturday night, and again at training on Tuesday, was legendary boxing trainer Johnny Lewis, best known for his long stint with Jeff Fenech.
• See what trick shot Antonio Winterstein has to offer on the WIN News Locker Room in Wednesday night’s bulletin. It will be on air around 7.15pm.
• Our post-match award winners from Saturday night’s matches against the Rabbitohs were: NRL player of the match – James Tamou; NRL play of the day – Curtis Rona for his aerial skills in Matthew Wright’s second try; NYC player of the match – Josh Chudleigh; and NYC play of the day – Regan Grieve for his bonerattling tackle in the first half.
• Birthday wishes this week go to NYC forward Jack Brock who turns 19 on Friday.
• The Cowboys have added former Penrith NYC back Akeripa Tia Kilifi to our under-20s squad until the end of the 2015 season. He had his first training run with his new club this afternoon.
