It was a classic Queensland derby for the ages, and Kevin Walters’ battered Broncos secured an impressive 38-12 victory over the Cowboys.
It was a clash littered with highlight plays, but one stood out from the bunch, with a Tom Dearden tackle stunning the Suncorp Stadium crowd.
Scott Drinkwater threw a wayward pass in the second half, falling into the lap of centre Selwyn Cobbo who looked an almost certainty to score.
But Dearden had other ideas and charged from the other side of the field to drag Cobbo across the sideline at the very last second.
“Unbelievable. Tom Dearden. A tackle from heaven… this is an extraordinary chase. That goes into the annals of great try-saving tackles,” Dan Ginnane said.
“Tom Dearden was in the middle of the field. He has made up all that ground.”
His effort though, failed to inspire his North Queensland side to victory over a team that were without Reece Walsh, Payne Haas and Brendan Piakura.
Brisbane recorded the first points only two minutes into the clash, with Billy Walters throwing a big dummy to dive over the line.
The next four-pointer came from Jesse Arthars who flew onto a Fletcher Baker pass to score in the corner.
But the Cowboys hit back quickly, with Valentine Holmes charging his way over before the Broncos responded.
Kotoni Staggs scooped up a perfect Adam Reynolds grubber with an impressive finish, but the seesawing continued.
Drinkwater then got his name on the scoresheet, finishing off an effort that included multiple offloads, beating Ezra Mam to score in the corner.
Tyson Smoothy then scored the first try of the second period, before Ezra Mam stole the show, recovering his own grubber for a smart four-pointer.
Corey Oates put the finishing touches on the game, scoring from another Reynolds kick, recording his first try for 18 months.
