It was a headline Todd Payten and the Cowboys didn’t want heading into their Queensland derby against the Broncos.
Code Sports reporting on Friday afternoon around North Queensland fullback Scott Drinkwater being granted permission to speak with rival clubs, with heavy links to the currently winless St George-Illawarra Dragons.
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The news, while a distraction, seemingly powered the 28-year old to an inspired performance in their 35-31 win over the Broncos at Suncorp Stadium, in what was his 150th NRL game.
The Cowboys No.1 stepping up when it mattered, slotting a field goal to level the scores at 31-all before Jake Clifford found the hands of Heilum Luki to cross for the winning try.
Drinkwater also crossed for a try, had a try assist and three line break assists, ran for 190 run metres, and had five tackle breaks.
Among all the noise heading into the derby, it was his composure throughout it all which impressed his coach the most.
“I was hopeful it (the story) wasn’t going to break until after the game just so it wasn’t a distraction for him… the way he handled that and the way he played, it’s a credit to him,” Cowboys coach Todd Payten said.
“His management asked us if it was OK for him to negotiate with other clubs on Wednesday, and we gave him the green light. I don’t want to make any more comment than that until I talk to Scott face-to-face.
“I don’t know what’s going to happen…. (we’re) not pushing him out the door, and I’ll have a conversation with him and see where it lands, but we value what he does for our club.”
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Friday night’s games exposed the good and bad of the potential situation Drinkwater finds himself in.
Just before the Cowboys’ fourth win in a row, the St George Illawarra Dragons slumped to a 10th-straight defeat in Wollongong, once again being met with a chorus of boos from their own fans as they went down 28-18 to the Manly Sea Eagles.
It’s a concern which former halfbacks Shaun Johnson and Cooper Cronk had speaking on Fox League’s coverage post-match, worried the Dragons might not be able to unlock the best out of Drinkwater.
“We’ve just touched on what brings Scott Drinkwater to life, and it’s ruck speed, it’s a pack that can generate some go forward… watching the Dragons earlier, it’s an area they are struggling with at the moment,” Johnson said.
“He (Drinkwater) would be handy for a lot of sides, but nowadays the modern day fullback has to be equally as dominant on the defensive side.
“He’s the heartbeat of the defensive line at times, so I’m sure he’s going to want to make some strides in that area.”
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It was a sentiment echoed by former premiership winner Cronk, who wonders if a link to the Dragons is a good thing for the fullback.
“Going to the Dragons, that’d be a risk for Drinkwater because he likes to play front-foot, fast, free-flowing… and the Dragons are not playing well at the moment,” Cronk said
“They don’t have athletic forwards like (Jason) Taumalolo or (Heilum) Luki to generate ruck speed, so that would be a risk.
However former Broncos mentor Kevin Walters thinks the attacking upside Drinkwater brings to a team could spur the Dragons onto more points.
“He’d certainly make a difference to the Dragons, absolutely,” Walters said.
“From an attacking point of view they’ve scored the least amount of points of any team in the competition…. he’d be a good signing I reckon for a club that needs to score points.”
The six-time premiership winner with a valid point, considering the Dragons have only scored 86 points across five games played so far this season, for an average of under 15 points scored each game.
Their lack of attacking flair was particularly punished by Drinkwater of all people last week, when the Cowboys humbled St-George Illawarra 32-0 in Sydney.
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