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The 2022 North Queensland Cowboys season was the 28th in the club's history. Coached by Todd Payten and captained by Jason Taumalolo and Chad Townsend, they competed in the NRL's 2022 Telstra Premiership.

The Cowboys returned to the finals after four seasons in the bottom four, finishing one game short of the Grand Final. They finished the regular season in the third position and won 17 games, their equal-highest ever (along with 2015).

Season summary

Milestones

• Round 1: Peta Hiku, Jamayne Taunoa-Brown and Chad Townsend made their debuts for the club.
• Round 1: Tom Gilbert scored his first NRL try.
• Round 2: Mitchell Dunn played his 50th NRL game for the club.
• Round 3: Reece Robson played his 50th NRL game.
• Round 3: Griffin Neame scored his first NRL try.
• Round 10: Reuben Cotter scored his first NRL try.
• Round 10: Peta Hiku scored his first try for the club.
• Round 11: Tom Dearden played his 50th NRL game.
• Round 13: Brendan Elliot made his debut for the club.
• Round 16: Luciano Leilua made his debut for the club.
• Round 16: Luciano Leilua played his 100th NRL game.
• Round 18: Tom Chester made his NRL debut.
• Round 21: Valentine Holmes played his 50th NRL game for the club.
• Round 21: Luciano Leilua and Chad Townsend scored their first tries for the club.

Squad

Squad movement

Gains

Player	Signed From	Until End of	Notes
Iosefo Baleiwairiki	Fiji Rugby Sevens	2022
Brendan Elliot	Leigh Centurions	2022
Brendan Frei	Norths Devils (mid-season)	2022
Peta Hiku	New Zealand Warriors	2023
Luciano Leilua	Wests Tigers (mid-season)	2025
Taniela Sadrugu	Fiji Rugby Sevens	2022
Gehamat Shibasaki	Green Rockets Tokatsu (mid-season)	2022
Jamayne Taunoa-Brown	New Zealand Warriors	2024
Chad Townsend	New Zealand Warriors	2024

Losses

Player	Signed To	Until End of	Notes
Daejarn Asi	New Zealand Warriors (mid-season)	2022
Javid Bowen	Retired	–
Lachlan Burr	Retired	–
Peter Hola	Canberra Raiders	2023
Francis Molo	St. George Illawarra Dragons	2024
Corey Jensen	Brisbane Broncos	2023
Shane Wright	Salford Red Devils	2023

Re-signings

Player	Club	Until End of	Notes
Scott Drinkwater	North Queensland Cowboys	2026
Mitchell Dunn	North Queensland Cowboys	2023
Brendan Elliot	North Queensland Cowboys	2023
Jake Granville	North Queensland Cowboys	2023
Ben Hampton	North Queensland Cowboys	2023
Heilum Luki	North Queensland Cowboys	2025
Jeremiah Nanai	North Queensland Cowboys	2023
Griffin Neame	North Queensland Cowboys	2025
Reece Robson	North Queensland Cowboys	2025
Taniela Sadrugu	North Queensland Cowboys	2023
Murray Taulagi	North Queensland Cowboys	2026

Ladder

2022 NRL season v t e
Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	B	PF	PA	PD	Pts
1	Penrith Panthers (P)	24	20	0	4	1	636	330	+306	42
2	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks	24	18	0	6	1	573	364	+209	38
3	North Queensland Cowboys	24	17	0	7	1	633	361	+272	36
4	Parramatta Eels	24	16	0	8	1	608	489	+119	34
5	Melbourne Storm	24	15	0	9	1	657	410	+247	32
6	Sydney Roosters	24	15	0	9	1	635	434	+201	32
7	South Sydney Rabbitohs	24	14	0	10	1	604	474	+130	30
8	Canberra Raiders	24	14	0	10	1	524	461	+63	30
9	Brisbane Broncos	24	13	0	11	1	514	550	−36	28
10	St. George Illawarra Dragons	24	12	0	12	1	469	569	−100	26
11	Manly Warringah Sea Eagles	24	9	0	15	1	490	595	−105	20
12	Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs	24	7	0	17	1	383	575	−192	16
13	Gold Coast Titans	24	6	0	18	1	455	660	−205	14
14	Newcastle Knights	24	6	0	18	1	372	662	−290	14
15	New Zealand Warriors	24	6	0	18	1	408	700	−292	14
16	Wests Tigers	24	4	0	20	1	352	679	−327	10

Fixtures

Pre-season

Date	Round	Opponent	Venue	Score	Tries	Goals	Attendance
Saturday, 19 February	Trial 1	South Sydney Rabbitohs	Barlow Park	24 – 12	Bourke, Z. Laybutt, Lipp, Niko	Asi (4/4)	7,128
Saturday, 26 February	Trial 2	Brisbane Broncos	BB Print Stadium	26 – 6	Taulagi (2), Holmes, Tabuai-Fidow	Holmes (4/4), Drinkwater (1/1)	4,545
Legend:   Win   Loss   Draw   Bye

Regular season

Date	Round	Opponent	Venue	Score	Tries	Goals	Attendance
Saturday, 13 March	Round 1	Canterbury Bulldogs	Queensland Country Bank Stadium	4 – 6	Gilbert	Holmes (0/1)	12,640
Saturday, 19 March	Round 2	Canberra Raiders	Queensland Country Bank Stadium	26 – 6	Feldt, Nanai, Tabuai-Fidow, Taulagi	Holmes (5/6)	13,864
Sunday, 27 March	Round 3	Brisbane Broncos	Suncorp Stadium	38 – 12	Nanai (3), Dearden, Holmes, Neame	Holmes (7/7)	37,761
Saturday, 2 April	Round 4	Sydney Roosters	Queensland Country Bank Stadium	4 – 28	Taulagi	Holmes (0/1)	17,929
Friday, 8 April	Round 5	New Zealand Warriors	Moreton Daily Stadium	24 – 25	Dearden, Drinkwater, Feldt, Holmes	Holmes (4/6)	6,254
Thursday, 14 April	Round 6	Canberra Raiders	GIO Stadium	18 – 12	Holmes, Luki, Nanai	Holmes (3/3)	11,854
Saturday, 23 April	Round 7	Gold Coast Titans	Queensland Country Bank Stadium	30 – 4	Dearden, Drinkwater, Luki, Nanai, Taulagi	Holmes (5/6)	14,547
Saturday, 30 April	Round 8	Parramatta Eels	TIO Stadium	35 – 4	Feldt (3), Dearden, Drinkwater, Tabuai-Fidow	Holmes (5/7, 1 FG)	10,017
Saturday, 7 May	Round 9	Newcastle Knights	Queensland Country Bank Stadium	36 – 16	Dearden, Feldt, Holmes, Luki, Nanai, Taulagi	Holmes (6/6)	14,463
Sunday, 15 May	Round 10	Wests Tigers	Suncorp Stadium	36 – 12	Taulagi (2), Cotter, Drinkwater, Feldt, Hiku, Nanai	Holmes (4/7)	43,401
Saturday, 21 May	Round 11	Melbourne Storm	Queensland Country Bank Stadium	36 – 6	Nanai (2), Drinkwater, Gilbert, Robson, Taulagi	Holmes (6/6)	22,728
Friday, 27 May	Round 12	Penrith Panthers	BlueBet Stadium	0 – 22			17,125
Thursday, 2 June	Round 13	Gold Coast Titans	Cbus Super Stadium	32 – 6	Tabuai-Fidow (2), Hiku, Luki, Robson, Taulagi	Drinkwater (4/6)	10,334
Friday, 10 June	Round 14	St. George Illawarra Dragons	Queensland Country Bank Stadium	31 – 12	Drinkwater, Hiku, Lemuelu, Robson, Taulagi	Holmes (5/6), Townsend (FG)	14,683
Friday, 17 June	Round 15	Manly Sea Eagles	4 Pines Park	28 – 26	Holmes (2), Lemuelu, Nanai, Robson	Holmes (4/5)	9,226
Saturday, 2 July	Round 16	Brisbane Broncos	Queensland Country Bank Stadium	40 – 26	Taulagi (2), Feldt, Nanai, Neame, Robson	Holmes (8/8)	23,351
	Round 17	Bye
Friday, 15 July	Round 18	Cronulla Sharks	Queensland Country Bank Stadium	12 – 26	Feldt, Tabuai-Fidow	Townsend (2/2)	15,982
Sunday, 24 July	Round 19	Wests Tigers	Queensland Country Bank Stadium	27 – 26	Nanai (2), Dearden, Holmes	Holmes (5/5, 1 FG)	14,910
Sunday, 31 July	Round 20	St. George Illawarra Dragons	Netstrata Jubilee Stadium	34 – 8	Drinkwater (2), Nanai (2), Feldt, Neame	Holmes (5/6)	9,517
Saturday, 7 August	Round 21	Canterbury Bulldogs	Salter Oval	28 – 14	Drinkwater (2), Leilua, Neame, Townsend	Holmes (4/6)	8,521
Saturday, 13 August	Round 22	Sydney Roosters	Sydney Cricket Ground	18 – 32	Robson, Tabuai-Fidow, Taulagi	Holmes (3/3)	15,219
Friday, 19 August	Round 23	New Zealand Warriors	Queensland Country Bank Stadium	48 – 4	Dearden (2), Hess, Hiku, Leilua, Nanai, Taulagi, Townsend	Holmes (8/9)	17,404
Saturday, 27 August	Round 24	South Sydney Rabbitohs	Stadium Australia	10 – 20	Feldt, Taulagi	Holmes (1/2)	15,264
Saturday, 3 September	Round 25	Penrith Panthers	Queensland Country Bank Stadium	38 – 8	Holmes (3), Drinkwater, Robson, Tabuai-Fidow, Taulagi	Holmes (3/5), Townsend (2/2)	23,840
Legend:   Win   Loss   Draw   Bye

Finals

Date	Round	Opponent	Venue	Score	Tries	Goals	Attendance
Sunday, 10 September	Qualifying	Cronulla Sharks	PointsBet Stadium	32 – 30	Dearden, Tom Gilbert, Hiku, Taulagi, Taumalolo	Holmes (5/6, 1 FG)	12,447
Friday, September 23	Preliminary	Parramatta Eels	Queensland Country Bank Stadium	20 – 24	Cotter, Leilua, Taulagi	Holmes (4/5)	25,372
Legend:   Win   Loss   Draw

Statistics

Representatives

The following players played a representative match in 2022.

Honours

League

• Dally M Coach of the Year: Todd Payten
• Dally M Centre of the Year: Valentine Holmes
• Dally M Second Rower of the Year: Jeremiah Nanai
• Dally M Rookie of the Year: Jeremiah Nanai
• Dally M Try of the Year: Scott Drinkwater

Club

• Paul Bowman Medal: Jason Taumalolo
• Players' Player: Tom Dearden
• The Cowboys Way Award: Tom Dearden
• Rookie of the Year: Jeremiah Nanai
• JCU Education Award: Scott Drinkwater
• Young Guns Cowboys Way Award: Robert Derby
• Club Person of the Year: Tom Gilbert
• Member's Player of the Year: Jeremiah Nanai

Feeder Clubs

Queensland Cup

• Mackay Cutters – 11th, missed finals
• Northern Pride – 8th, lost elimination final
• Townsville Blackhawks – 10th, missed finals

Women's team

QRL Women's Premiership

• North Queensland Gold Stars – 3rd, Premiers

References

1. "'We'll be back': Payten's pledge after Prelim heartbreak". NQ Cowboys. 24 September 2022.
2. Development players train with the Top 30 squad but cannot play NRL until after Round 10
3. Players in the extended squad train with the Top 30 squad but are on train and trial or junior contracts
4. ^ "Fijian Rugby Sevens duo to join Cowboys for 2022 season". NQ Cowboys. 20 September 2021.
5. "Cowboys sign Elliot". NQ Cowboys. 25 January 2022.
6. "Frei joins Cowboys". NQ Cowboys. 23 May 2022.
7. "Cowboys sign Hiku". NQ Cowboys. 24 May 2021.
8. "Luciano Leilua granted early release". Wests Tigers. 14 June 2022.
9. "North Queensland Cowboys sign Gehamat Shibasaki". Wide World of Sports. 16 July 2022.
10. "Cowboys sign Taunoa-Brown". NQ Cowboys. 21 October 2021.
11. "Cowboys sign Townsend". NQ Cowboys. 21 April 2021.
12. "Cowboys half Asi signed for rest of season". NZ Warriors. 26 April 2022.
13. "Tragic knee injury forces North Queensland Cowboys Javid Bowen centre into retirement". Townsville Bulletin. 26 October 2021.
14. "Lachlan Burr retires". NQ Cowboys. 23 February 2022.
15. "Raiders sign Peter Hola". Canberra Raiders. 21 October 2021.
16. "Molo Dragons bound in 2022". St. George Illawarra Dragons. 16 March 2021.
17. "Prop Corey Jensen Joins Broncos From 2022". broncos.com.au. 16 August 2021. Retrieved 9 September 2021.
18. "Cowboys forward Shane Wright has inked a deal with Salford while a club champion will not suit up next season". Townsville Bulletin. 21 August 2021.
19. "Drinkwater signs long-term extension". NQ Cowboys. 2 September 2022.
20. "Dunn, Granville return for 2023". NQ Cowboys. 18 July 2022.
21. ^ "Cowboys extend Hampton, Elliot". NQ Cowboys. 28 July 2022.
22. "Dunn, Granville return for 2023". NQ Cowboys. 18 July 2022.
23. "Cowboys re-sign Luki". NQ Cowboys. 18 February 2022.
24. "Cowboys re-sign Jeremiah Nanai". NQ Cowboys. 4 April 2022.
25. "Neame extends Cowboys contract". NQ Cowboys. 31 August 2022.
26. "Robson signs extension". NQ Cowboys. 8 November 2022.
27. "Sadrugu earns promotion". NQ Cowboys. 24 August 2022.
28. "Cowboys re-sign Taulagi". NQ Cowboys. 8 September 2022.
29. "Payten named 2022 NRL Dally M Coach of the Year". NQ Cowboys. 28 September 2022.
30. "Nanai, Holmes named in Dally M Team of the Year". NQ Cowboys. 28 September 2022.
31. "Nanai wins 2022 Dally M NRL Rookie of the Year Award". NQ Cowboys. 28 September 2022.
32. "Drinkwater's Magic Round miracle wins try of the year". NQ Cowboys. 28 September 2022.
33. ^ "Taumalolo claims sixth Paul Bowman Medal". NQ Cowboys. 4 September 2022.

27°27′53″S 153°0′34″E / 27.46472°S 153.00944°E / -27.46472; 153.00944

• North Queensland Cowboys seasons
• 2022 NRL season by club