The Roosters put 82 points on the Cowboys. What Todd Payten did next saved their season

It’s oft-quoted fact that no team has won the NRL premiership after conceding 50 points during the regular season.

What about simply reaching the finals after conceding 82? Never happened. Until now.

North Queensland coach Todd Payten described the round 22 horror show when the Sydney Roosters thumped the Cowboys 82-12 in their own backyard as “one of our darkest days, if not the darkest day”.

“That night was also the first time in my career I was unsure what to say at half-time,” Payten said.

Yet here we are, just over a month later, and the Cowboys are in the finals. Saturday’s final round clash against Canberra is a chance to fine-tune things before a likely elimination final against Cronulla next Sunday.

So how did Payten stop things capitulating after the Roosters? A marathon lock-in at the Mad Cow? Extra sessions charging up Castle Hill?

What he did next went a long way to salvaging their campaign. Yeeee-haaaaaw.

Only half the playing group were required back at Cowboys Leagues Club after the loss, but Payten changed his mind and ordered every player and staff member to front the crowd of cranky fans.

“I told them we were all about to cop a pizzling, but everything that was coming our way was going to be warranted, and we’d have to wear it,” Payten said.

“Our supporters are pretty honest. They stand behind us when they see effort, and let us know when we don’t. They pay their hard-earned cash, they’re an important part of the community, and we let them down that night.”

Payten was aghast at what he witnessed against the Roosters, but saw enough to keep him from losing heart entirely.

“In hindsight, I made some public comments about the Broncos a week earlier, I spoke to our players about our history and the history against the Broncos, and maybe I revved them up too much,” Payten said. “I knew we’d be flat, but in no way did I see that performance [coming].

“I felt like our leaders were unsure what to say at times behind the sticks, and there were moments we went super quiet. It was important we put in place a plan if there was any uncertainty about what to say moving forward.

“There was no need to cut the game up and watch it again. I told them one game was not going to define our season, and nothing had changed in terms of us trying to make the finals.

“I can’t remember which try it was the Roosters scored, but they had made a lengthy linebreak, and Heilum Luki chased from the other side of the field along with Jaxon Purdue, and we had about four or five guys around the ball running back.

“We were still showing care and effort. If I didn’t see that, I would have been questioning what we were doing.”

Payten returned home to watch the replay. His wife, Julie, to whom he refers as “Gus Gould”, chimed in with some free advice, as she usually does, and “gave me her rundown of what happened or what should have happened”.

“We showed a lot of resolve the following week, beat the Titans after having a man in the bin, and bounced back quickly,” Payten said.

When the Cowboys had the bye a few weeks later, Payten drove four hours south to Mackay and spent time with the Australian cricket team, who were playing the second Test against Bangladesh.

Payten wanted to know was how a group responded after a such a heavy defeat, and sought the counsel of the cricketers who had just gone down to a shock loss to the tourists Bangladesh in Darwin.

“I spoke with several of the senior guys about taking emotion away from things; there was no over-reaction from them, no under-reaction from them after Darwin, just a need to stay calm and connected, which was refreshing to hear,” he said.

Similarly, Dolphins coach Kristian Woolf has watched his side lose 66-0 to Cronulla as well as 52-18 to Manly this season. But, like the Cowboys, the Dolphins have recovered to reach the finals – and in it up to their eyeballs with a top-four berth.

Manly was the last team to concede 68 points during the regular season and go on to make the finals, in 2005.

Unlike 20 years ago, fatigue and momentum from set restarts mean lop-sided scorelines are the new norm. History is about to change.

Woolf blamed the Manly loss on fatigue, while the Sharks defeat was a simple bludger of a performance. He knocked over that review the next day at recovery.

Woolf blamed himself for the preparation. The NRL newcomers have been on the end of several blowouts, but more often than not bounced back quickly to ensure there is no mental scarring.

The unlikely campaigns continue.

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Christian Nicolussi covers rugby league for The Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via X or email.AdvertisementAdvertisement