Cowboys stunned by huge crowd at training

Apr 11, 2013 - 5:36 AM North Queensland players were stunned by the massive crowd that watched them train at West Arana Hills juniors on Thursday afternoon before Friday night's NRL showdown with Brisbane.

The team's bus had difficulty getting into the ground as hundreds of cars jammed streets around the club.

"It's pretty unbelievable the number of people that are here," said Cowboys foundation player and assistant coach Paul Bowman.

Bowman said the Brisbane turnout, estimated at more than 2,000, was the biggest crowd he could remember watching the Cowboys train.

The players were overwhelmed by the response and stayed back an hour after the training session to sign autographs and have photos taken with fans.

They were supposed to be back at their city hotel for a team dinner at 6pm but had not even left the ground by then.

Veteran centre Brent Tate, who has survived three knee reconstructions, a shoulder reconstruction, seven ankle operations, a broken jaw and a shoulder reconstruction will play his 200th NRL game against Brisbane where he career started in 2001.

"If you can't get up for a game like this, you're in for a very long night," said Tate, hoping to secure a contract extension.

Source: AAP