Cowboys coach Todd Payten has described the record loss to the Roosters as the club’s “darkest day” while captain Reuben Cotter said it was as the “most embarrassing game” he’d ever been a part of.
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The Cowboys were awful as the Roosters strolled in for 14 tries to score 82 points, which was the third most of all-time, and just nine points behind the record set by St George in 1935.
Sam Walker ran riot and his 36 points was the equal fourth most ever by a player in a premiership match.
It was Roosters’ sixth win in a row and North Queensland’s biggest losing margin, and the most points conceded in club history.
After the match, a stunned Payten offered an apology to fans as he summed up how he felt.
“That’s absolutely unacceptable. And as a coach for this club, it’s one of our darkest days, if not the darkest day, and I’d like to apologise to our members and fans that turned up here today and those that watched it at home,” Payten said.
“The game was out of reach after 20 minutes.”
Payten revealed that he had concerns about how the team was shaping up before the match started.
“A couple of things worried me in the warm-up. I watched us and then thought they just moved faster and tackled a little bit harder in the warm-up,” he said.
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The Roosters were already making history by halftime when posting 48 points – the equal most in an opening half of football in NRL history.
They couldn’t quite break the all-time points record of 91, but it didn’t matter and the Cowboys could now drop out of the top eight if the Bulldogs beat the Storm tomorrow night.
Cowboys skipper Cotter finished the match with just two runs as the Roosters had 65 per cent of possession.
“The most embarrassing game we’ve ever been a part of, I reckon. We just didn’t turn up, physically, and we were loose all across the park,” Cotter said.
“It’s going to hurt for a bit. But we’ve got the weekend to think about it but (we need to) stick together and try and move on to next week because we’re on again down at the Gold Coast.”
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“Not making excuses, not making excuses at all. That’s between the ears, that’s where it is,” Payten said.
The Cowboys coach said he wouldn’t even bother doing video on the game and would back the current group to get themselves into form ahead of the finals.
“I don’t think we review that. We certainly discuss it, but the message is we’re in on Monday, ready to work,” Payten said.
“We’ve got to find a way to get it back up week after week.
“I’m not making changes, that’s our best team. What happened tonight’s not acceptable, but they get a chance to bite down on the mouth guard and go next Thursday.”
The only problem on the night for the Roosters was an ankle injury to James Tedesco, who didn’t play a part in the second half.
He rolled his ankle in the first five minutes but was only taken off as a precaution.