The 2003 North Queensland Cowboys season was the 9th in the club's history. Coached by Graham Murray and captained by Paul Bowman, they competed in the NRL's 2003 Telstra Premiership. Although the club once again finished 11th, they recorded their highest number of wins (10) and competition points (24) in a season.[1]
| 2003 North Queensland Cowboys season | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NRL Rank | 11th | |||
| Play-off result | Missed finals | |||
| 2003 record | Wins: 10; draws: 0; losses: 14 | |||
| Points scored | For: 606; against: 629 | |||
| Team information | ||||
| CEO | Denis Keeffe | |||
| Coach | Graham Murray | |||
| Captain | ||||
| Stadium | Dairy Farmers Stadium | |||
| Avg. attendance | 14,892 | |||
| High attendance | 25,242 (vs. Brisbane Broncos, Round 4) | |||
| Top scorers | ||||
| Tries | Matt Sing (21) | |||
| Goals | Josh Hannay (95) | |||
| Points | Josh Hannay (230) | |||
| ||||
Season summary
editThe rebuild continued for the Cowboys heading into the 2003 season, with 12 players leaving the club. Their key signings included premiership-winning back rower Kevin Campion, New Zealand international prop Paul Rauhihi and journeyman utility David Myles. All three would eventually help the club to their first finals appearance a year later.
Following a solid end to the 2002 season, the new year started brightly for the club, as they won six games from the first 12 rounds to sit inside the Top 8. They picked up three straights win from Rounds 10-12, their first three-game winning streak since 1998. A mid-season slump would soon follow, with eight losses from their next nine fixtures.
The season ended strongly once again, with three wins from their final four games to secure a second consecutive 11th place finish, four competition points outside the Top 8. During the season Matt Sing became the first Cowboy to represent Australia, when selected for their July Test match against New Zealand.
Milestones
edit- Round 1: Kevin Campion, Paul McNicholas, David Myles and Paul Rauhihi made their debuts for the club.
- Round 2: Brenton Bowen made his NRL debut.
- Round 6: Neil Sweeney made his debut for the club.
- Round 13: Jason Barsley made his NRL debut.
- Round 13: John Buttigieg played his 100th game for the club.
- Round 14: Matthew Bowen played his 50th game for the club.
- Round 15: Aaron Morgan made his NRL debut.
- Round 18: Daniel Sorbello made his NRL debut.
- Round 19: Micheal Luck played his 50th game for the club.
- Round 22: Jacob Lillyman made his NRL debut.
- Round 22: Daniel Strickland played his 50th game for the club.
- Round 23: Shane Muspratt played his 50th game for the club.
Squad List
edit| First team squad | Coaching staff | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|
Head coach Assistant coach
| ||||||
Squad Movement
edit2003 Gains
edit
2003 Losses
edit| Player | Signed from |
|---|---|
| Ashley Alberts |  Brisbane Broncos [16] |
| Tevita Amone | Released |
| Tarin Bradford | Retired [17] |
| Tim Brasher | Retired [18] |
| John Doyle |  Central Comets [19] |
| Peter Jones | Retired [20] |
| Tim Maddison |  Pia Donkeys [21][22] |
| John Manning |  Melbourne Storm |
| Ken McGuinness | Retired [23][24] |
| Justin McKay |  Wests Tigers |
| Grant Rovelli |  Sydney Roosters |
| Shaun Valentine | Retired [25] |
Ladder
edit| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | B | PF | PA | PD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Penrith Panthers (P) |
24 | 18 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 659 | 527 | +132 | 40 |
| 2 | Sydney Roosters |
24 | 17 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 680 | 445 | +235 | 38 |
| 3 |  Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs |
24 | 16 | 0 | 8 | 2 | 702 | 419 | +283 | 36 |
| 4 |  Canberra Raiders |
24 | 16 | 0 | 8 | 2 | 620 | 463 | +157 | 36 |
| 5 | Melbourne Storm |
24 | 15 | 0 | 9 | 2 | 564 | 486 | +78 | 34 |
| 6 |  New Zealand Warriors |
24 | 15 | 0 | 9 | 2 | 545 | 510 | +35 | 34 |
| 7 |  Newcastle Knights |
24 | 14 | 0 | 10 | 2 | 632 | 635 | -3 | 32 |
| 8 | Brisbane Broncos |
24 | 12 | 0 | 12 | 2 | 497 | 464 | +33 | 28 |
| 9 |  Parramatta Eels |
24 | 11 | 0 | 13 | 2 | 570 | 582 | -12 | 26 |
| 10 |  St George Illawarra Dragons |
24 | 11 | 0 | 13 | 2 | 548 | 593 | -45 | 26 |
| 11 |  North Queensland Cowboys |
24 | 10 | 0 | 14 | 2 | 606 | 629 | -23 | 24 |
| 12 |  Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks |
24 | 8 | 0 | 16 | 2 | 497 | 704 | -207 | 20 |
| 13 | Wests Tigers |
24 | 7 | 0 | 17 | 2 | 470 | 598 | -128 | 18 |
| 14 |  Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles |
24 | 7 | 0 | 17 | 2 | 557 | 791 | -234 | 18 |
| 15 | South Sydney Rabbitohs |
24 | 3 | 0 | 21 | 2 | 457 | 758 | -301 | 10 |
Fixtures
editRegular season
edit
Statistics
edit| Name | App | T | G | FG | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jason Barsley | 3 | 1 | - | - | 4 |
| Brenton Bowen | 6 | 3 | - | - | 12 |
| Matthew Bowen | 20 | 9 | 5 | - | 46 |
| Paul Bowman | 16 | 3 | - | - | 12 |
| John Buttigieg | 8 | - | - | - | - |
| Kevin Campion | 24 | - | - | - | - |
| Paul Dezolt | 9 | 1 | - | - | 4 |
| Nathan Fien | 2 | - | - | - | - |
| George Gatis | 1 | - | - | - | - |
| Josh Hannay | 23 | 10 | 95 | - | 230 |
| Jacob Lillyman | 3 | - | - | - | - |
| Jaiman Lowe | 24 | 2 | - | - | 8 |
| Micheal Luck | 22 | 1 | - | - | 4 |
| Jamie McDonald | 11 | 1 | - | - | 4 |
| Paul McNicholas | 7 | 1 | - | - | 4 |
| Leigh McWilliams | 14 | 2 | - | - | 8 |
| Aaron Morgan | 2 | 2 | - | - | 8 |
| Glenn Morrison | 22 | 7 | 4 | - | 36 |
| Chris Muckert | 23 | 4 | - | - | 16 |
| Shane Muspratt | 21 | 1 | - | - | 4 |
| David Myles | 24 | 11 | - | - | 44 |
| Aaron Payne | 4 | 2 | - | - | 8 |
| Chris Sheppard | 22 | 2 | - | 2 | 10 |
| Matt Sing | 20 | 21 | - | - | 84 |
| Daniel Sorbello | 1 | - | - | - | - |
| Daniel Strickland | 17 | - | - | - | - |
| Neil Sweeney | 7 | 1 | - | - | 4 |
| David Thompson | 6 | - | - | - | - |
| Derrick Watkins | 1 | - | - | - | - |
| Scott Whiting | 2 | - | - | - | - |
| Ty Williams | 22 | 12 | - | - | 48 |
| Totals | 99 | 104 | 2 | 606 |
Source:[26]
Representatives
editThe following players played a representative match in 2003.
| City vs Country | State of Origin 1 | State of Origin 2 | State of Origin 3 | July Test | October Test | Ashes Series | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Matthew Bowen | - | - | Queensland | Queensland | - | - | - |
| Paul Bowman | - | Queensland | - | - | - | - | - |
| Josh Hannay | - | - | - | Queensland | - | - | - |
| Glenn Morrison | Country | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Paul Rauhihi | - | - | - | - | New Zealand | - | - |
| Matt Sing | - | Queensland | Queensland | Queensland | Australia | Australia | Australia |
Honours
editClub
edit- Player of the Year: Paul Rauhihi
- Players' Player: Matt Sing
- Club Person of the Year: Ty Williams
Feeder Clubs
edit
North Queensland Young Guns - 7th, missed finals
References
edit- ↑ Honours Archived 2011-10-12 at the Wayback Machine at cowboys.com.au
- ↑ "Player Profiles: Jason Barsley". www.cowboys.com.au. Retrieved 10 April 2026.
Brisbane born Jason Barsley is a versatile young player who was recruited to the Cowboys after representing the Cairns Cyclones and the CQ Comets.
- ↑ "Player Profiles : Dane Campbell". www.cowboys.com.au. Retrieved 10 April 2026.
Brisbane born Dano comes to the Cowboys from the Redcliffe Dolphins
- ↑ "CAMPION MOVES HOME TO THE CHR COWBOYS". www.cowboys.com.au. Retrieved 8 April 2026.
- ↑ "Kevin Campion". www.cowboys.com.au. Retrieved 10 April 2026.
- ↑ "NQ COWBOYS RECRUIT UNION CONVERT". www.cowboys.com.au. Retrieved 9 April 2026.
Today the North Queensland Cowboys announced the signing of Australian Under 19 Rugby Union Captain Luke Cross to the club.
- ↑ "PAUL McNICHOLAS BECOMES A CHR COWBOY". www.cowboys.com.au. Retrieved 8 April 2026.
- ↑ "Paul McNicholas". www.cowboys.com.au. Retrieved 10 April 2026.
- ↑ "NEW SIGNINGS AT THE CHR COWBOYS". www.cowboys.com.au. Retrieved 8 April 2026.
The club has also retained the services of Young Guns second rower Derricke Watkins. Both Meigan and Watkins have agreed to 2-year terms with the club.
- ↑ "Player Profiles: Aaron Morgan". www.cowboys.com.au. Retrieved 10 April 2026.
- ↑ "TOYOTA COWBOYS READY TO RIDE ROUND 1". www.cowboys.com.au. Retrieved 9 April 2026.
- ↑ "Player Profiles: David Myles". www.cowboys.com.au. Retrieved 10 April 2026.
- ↑ "RAUHIHI MOVES TO THE CHR COWBOYS". www.cowboys.com.au. Retrieved 8 April 2026.
- ↑ "Paul Rauhihi". www.cowboys.com.au. Retrieved 10 April 2026.
- ↑ "Player Profiles: Neil Sweeney". www.cowboys.com.au. Retrieved 10 April 2026.
- ↑ "NQ COWBOYS RECRUIT UNION CONVERT". www.cowboys.com.au. Retrieved 9 April 2026.
"With our forward pack strengthened for 2003, and the loss of Jermaine and Ashley Alberts we have been on the lookout for an outside back and Luke fits in quite well."
- ↑ "Personal problems cause promising winger to quit the Cowboys". The Sydney Morning Herald. 16 May 2002. Retrieved 10 April 2026.
- ↑ "BRASHER TO HANG UP HIS BOOTS". www.cowboys.com.au. Retrieved 8 April 2026.
- ↑ "Rothery boys return home, Fish and Doyle sign » League Unlimited". League Unlimited. Retrieved 10 April 2026.
The former Cowboy adds plenty of experience and professionalism to the club and when he was around in 2003 the players were a lot better for it and the side looked a lot better side when he was on the field.
- ↑ "INAUGURAL COWBOY CALLS IT A DAY". www.cowboys.com.au. Retrieved 8 April 2026.
- ↑ "Where are they now: Tim Maddison". Newcastle Knights. 22 December 2017. Retrieved 9 April 2026.
From 1996 was where his journey of other clubs began, from the Sydney City Roosters, Hunter Mariners, the Cronulla Sharks and North Queensland before he found himself coming back home. "I had a season in France which was great fun
- ↑ "Blacklock may return for night of Knights". The Sydney Morning Herald. 10 June 2003. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
- ↑ "McGUINNESS TO HANG UP HIS BOOTS". www.cowboys.com.au. Retrieved 8 April 2026.
- ↑ "McGuinness follows Brasher into retirement » League Unlimited". League Unlimited. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
- ↑ "Seven hits too many for Shaun Valentine". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 10 April 2026.
- ↑ "NRL 2003 - North Queensland Cowboys - Rugby League Project".