North Queensland Cowboys Announce Affiliate Agreements

The North Queensland Cowboys have confirmed their feeder club structure through to the end of the 2028 season, renewing agreements with the Northern Pride and Mackay Cutters while reinstating the Townsville Blackhawks as an affiliate club for the first time since 2023.

Under the renewed three-club system, Cowboys NRL squad members will be allocated to the Pride, Cutters and Blackhawks throughout the Queensland Cup season, providing consistent playing opportunities and supporting player development across multiple levels of competition.

In return, the affiliate clubs will be able to send selected players to the Cowboys for pre-season training stints, with the potential for game-time in trial matches.

Sharing how the agreement reflects the club’s commitment to maintaining a regional talent pipeline, Cowboys general manager of football, Micheal Luck, said: “To have all three clubs in our footprint on board as affiliate clubs is terrific for rugby league in North Queensland.”

“The three-affiliate system has been fruitful for the development of our players plying their trade in the Queensland Cup,” Luck said. 

Expressing how the reunion aligns with the club’s mission to retain and develop regional players, Townsville Blackhawks chairman, Glen Carroll, added: “This collaboration strengthens the pathway for our home-grown talent to remain in North Queensland while playing rugby league at the highest level.” 

Highlighting the longevity and impact of the partnership in Far North Queensland, Northern Pride chairwoman, Kym McPhee-Smith, noted: “For more than a decade, this relationship has been the heartbeat of our rugby league pathway.”

“Together, we’re building the future of rugby league in the north,” she said. 

Noting the region’s history of producing top Cowboys talent, Mackay Cutters chairman, Steve Dowden, concluded: “The Mackay region has produced some of the great players to wear a Cowboys jersey, this agreement gives aspiring players a clear pathway from junior clubs to the Cutters and finally to the Cowboys.”

Coaching development is also embedded into the agreement, with each club’s head coach set to spend time alongside Cowboys head coach, Todd Payten and his staff at the Hutchinson Builders Centre.

The Cowboys will also make direct financial contributions to all three clubs, strengthening operational and pathway sustainability.

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