Cronulla Sharks vs North Queensland Cowboys - Finals Week 1, 2026
The result
The Sharks led 12 to 6 at halftime and held on for a 26 to 16 win over the Cowboys at Allianz Stadium. Siosifa Talakai opened the scoring in the 20th minute, and the Cowboys never got closer than four points after the break.
How it unfolded
The Sharks made 82 percent of their completion rate to the Cowboys' 62 percent, and got through 1581 all run metres to the Cowboys' 1402. The Cowboys hit back with 6 line breaks to the Sharks' 4, despite leaking 17 errors to the Sharks' 9.
Against projection
John Bateman ran in a score of 51 against a projection of 33, while Braidon Burns crossed for a try and finished with 50 against an expected 38. KL Iro fell well short of his own projection, managing just 23 against an expected 45, and Riley Jones also missed badly, scoring 14 against a projected 32. Among the named starters, Jesse Colquhoun played only 36 minutes but still produced 42 points.
