Jason Taumalolo runs out for the 295th time in a Cowboys jersey at Queensland Country Bank Stadium on Friday night and the moment he steps over the line, he becomes the most-capped player in North Queensland's history. The number to break is 294, set by Johnathan Thurston when he retired at the end of the 2018 season. Taumalolo, 32, drew level last week against the Bulldogs in his side's 28-12 win and will stand alone Friday night against Parramatta.
Sixteen Seasons, One Club
Taumalolo signed with the Cowboys at 17 years old in 2010 and has not worn another club's jumper. His NRL debut came that year, with one game and a draw to show for it before injury kept him sidelined through 2011 and into 2012. The breakthrough year was 2014, when the back-rower upped his output to 25 NRL matches and 23 starts in the Cowboys' forward pack. By 2016 he had won the Dally M Medal jointly with Cooper Cronk, the Dally M Lock of the Year, the RLPA Players' Champion award, and the Cowboy of the Year. His career total of 45,346 running metres and 6,728 tackles puts him in the top-five running-and-defending forwards of the modern era.
The 2017 Grand Final season included his most famous statistical milestone, when he became the first forward in NRL history to clear 5,000 running metres in a single year. He cleared 200 metres a game across the season. The Paul Bowman Medal for Cowboy of the Year sat on his shelf five times consecutively from 2015, surpassing Thurston's previous record of four. Captaincy followed, first as match-day skipper in 2018 and then as co-captain alongside Michael Morgan in 2021.
The Two JTs
Thurston's 294 games at the Cowboys spanned 2005 to 2018, the back end of his career taking the club to its only premiership in 2015. Taumalolo arrived in the squad in 2010 and won that flag with him. Their partnership is the most successful any Cowboy has known. "It is a huge honour to be able to achieve a milestone like this, let alone at one club and breaking Johnno's record," Taumalolo said this week. Tom Dearden, the Cowboys' five-eighth, called it "the significance of this game" in his pre-match comments. The 35,000-seat Townsville stadium has sold out the seats not pre-allocated to members and corporates.
The Cowboys go into the contest 6-3 after eight rounds, sitting fifth on the ladder, with the only change to the 13 that beat Canterbury being Sam McIntyre coming in for the injured Jeremiah Nanai (shoulder). Parramatta sit 11th at 4-5, the Eels coming off a 38-25 loss to Newcastle. North Queensland are $1.30 favourites at dabble with the line at -10.5.
Where the Markets Land
Friday's contest sets up well for Taumalolo's milestone. The Eels start with the rebuilt halves of Ronald Volkman and Mitchell Moses, with Tallyn Da Silva at hooker. The Cowboys' premiership market sits at $26 at Picklebet, the same price as Manly. Penrith ($2.40) hold the NRL favouritism. Taumalolo is at $2 to register an offload on Friday and $1.50 to reach 100 running metres, the kind of milestone-friendly markets that get a run on a club-record night. Ladbrokes have the same lines.
Round 10 closes Sunday with Storm hosting Wests Tigers at AAMI Park, then Canberra hosting Penrith at GIO. Full Round 10 fixtures, team lists, and Taumalolo's milestone game video are available via ABC Sport.