NRL Round 9 Preview and Prediction - North Queensland Cowboys v Parramatta Eels @ 1300 Smiles Stadium

North Queensland Cowboys v Parramatta Eels @ 1300 Smiles Stadium
 
Preview - The Cowboys go in search of their 6th win from 9 games when they host the surging Parramatta Eels at 1300 Smiles Stadium in Townsville on Friday night. Without their Captain Johnathan Thurston for the second straight week, the Cowboys managed to grind out a scrappy but convincing 24-12 win over the Knights to stay in 6th spot on the competition ladder. The Eels have managed to get their season back on track in the last 2 weeks with victories over Western Sydney rivals, the Tigers and Panthers, both at ANZ Stadium. Last week they shot out to an 18-0 lead against the Panthers before holding on grimly for an 18-12 victory, to get back to 4 wins and 4 losses and sitting in 10th spot on the ladder. 
 
History - The Cowboys have had the wood on the Eels at 1300 Smiles Stadium having won their past three encounters against them in Townsville. Last year the sides only met once in Round 8 when the Cowboys won 32-16 at home. Overall, the Eels hold a slight edge with 18 victories compared to 16 losses and 1 draw.
 
North Queensland Cowboys’ Scouting Report - The Cowboys are playing ducks and drakes here with Johnathan Thurston named as 18th man, leaving Parramatta guessing as whether he will be a late inclusion. The fact that he has been named in the Australian side for next Friday’s Test match against New Zealand might indicate he is a chance of returning here to get a game under his belt. With Lachlan Coote still out, Kalyn Ponga remains at fullback after he had a blinder last week against his future Club, the Newcastle Knights.
 
Parramatta Eels’ Scouting Report -  The Eels have lost five-eight Brad Takairangi to injury with Kenny Edwards coming to partner Corey Norman in the halves. Norman returned to close to his best last week with 2 tries after hitting a bumpy patch of form, after a blistering start to the season. Bevan French remains sidelined meaning Clint Gutherson remains at fullback for another week. 
 
Verdict - Cowboys in a tight one if Thurston plays (if no Thurston Eels in a tight one) 

Hard to call this game until we know whether Thurston is going to come back from injury. Without Thurston, I think the Eels can cause somewhat of an upset here and get a rare victory in Townsville. The Cowboys were far from convincing last week against the Knights and relied on some individual magic from Ponga to get the job done. I think the Eels are getting their confidence back after a couple of tough back-to-back victories and, if Thurston doesn't play, will fancy getting involved in a forwards oriented, grinding type game against the Cowboys. If Thurston does play, that tips the scales in favour of the home side, given their strong recent record against the Eels and the added punch that Thurston will bring to the Cowboys’ attack. I expect a close and relatively low scoring game either way.