Manly-Warringah 22–12 North Queensland Cowboys — Semi-Final, 2012 NRL Finals Series
14 Sep 2012 · Allianz Stadium, Sydney, NSW · Attendance: 16,678
Data last verified: 11 August 2026.
Semi-Final, 2012 NRL finals series: Manly-Warringah 22–12 North Queensland Cowboys, at Allianz Stadium, Sydney, NSW on 14 Sep 2012.
Sourcing caveat: Try minutes and the fuller scorer list come primarily from a secondary match report rather than rugbyleagueproject.org's own scoresheet (which did not fully render via automated fetch); the try/goal tallies reconcile exactly with the 22-12 final score, giving confidence in accuracy despite the single-source detail level.
Scoring timeline
| 5′ | Manly-Warringah — try, Michael Oldfield |
| 20′ | Manly-Warringah — try, Brett Stewart |
| 30′ | North Queensland Cowboys — try, James Tamou |
| 45′ | North Queensland Cowboys — try, Antonio Winterstein |
| 52′ | Manly-Warringah — try, Jorge Taufua |
| 62′ | Manly-Warringah — try, Michael Oldfield |
Tries with a sourced minute, in order scored, with the conversion kicked/missed alongside each one where source data lets us match a kicker to that specific try. Tries whose exact minute isn't recorded in available sources appear in the Scorers table below but not here; goal tallies we can't attribute to one specific try are shown as descriptive text in Scorers rather than guessed into this timeline.
Scorers
| Manly-Warringah | Tries: Michael Oldfield 5'; Brett Stewart 20'; Jorge Taufua 52'; Michael Oldfield 62' Goals: Jamie Lyon (2/4 conversions, 1/1 penalty goal) |
| North Queensland Cowboys | Tries: James Tamou 30'; Antonio Winterstein 45' Goals: Johnathan Thurston (2/2 conversions) |
Team sheets
| Manly-Warringah | North Queensland Cowboys | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Brett Stewart | Fullback | Matt Bowen | 1 |
| 2 | Jorge Taufua | Wing | Ashley Graham | 2 |
| 3 | Jamie Lyon (c) | Centre | Brent Tate | 3 |
| 4 | Dean Whare | Centre | Kane Linnett | 4 |
| 5 | Michael Oldfield | Wing | Antonio Winterstein | 5 |
| 6 | Kieran Foran | Five-Eighth | Johnathan Thurston (c) | 6 |
| 7 | Daly Cherry-Evans | Halfback | Michael Morgan | 7 |
| 8 | Jason King | Prop | Matthew Scott | 8 |
| 9 | Matt Ballin | Hooker | James Segeyaro | 9 |
| 10 | Brent Kite | Prop | James Tamou | 10 |
| 11 | Anthony Watmough | Second-Row | Gavin Cooper | 11 |
| 12 | Tony Williams | Second-Row | Glenn Hall | 12 |
| 13 | Glenn Stewart | Lock | Dallas Johnson | 13 |
| Substitutes | ||||
| 14 | Jamie Buhrer | Jason Taumalolo | 14 | |
| 15 | Joe Galuvao | Ashton Sims | 15 | |
| 16 | Darcy Lussick | Scott Bolton | 16 | |
| 17 | Vic Mauro | Anthony Mitchell | 17 | |
| Geoff Toovey | Coach | Neil Henry | ||
Match officials
| Referee | Shayne Hayne and Ben Cummins (two-referee system) |
Match report
This sudden-death semi-final at Allianz Stadium decided who would face Melbourne Storm in the preliminary final, with the loser eliminated from the premiership race. Manly, fresh off a qualifying-final loss to Canterbury, started strongly, racing to a 12-0 lead inside 20 minutes through tries to Michael Oldfield and Brett Stewart. North Queensland, inspired by captain Johnathan Thurston, hit back before halftime and again after the break through James Tamou and Antonio Winterstein, locking the score at 12-12 by the 45th minute and setting up a tense finish. The match turned on two contentious video-referee rulings: Jorge Taufua's 52nd-minute try was awarded despite Cowboys' protests of a double movement, and Michael Oldfield's match-sealing 62nd-minute try stood despite North Queensland's contention that a knock-on had occurred beforehand. Jamie Lyon's goal-kicking, three from five including a penalty goal, proved the difference. Cowboys coach Neil Henry was scathing afterward about the officiating, while Manly advanced to the preliminary final against Melbourne.