Todd Payten safe as North Queensland Cowboys coach

Todd Payten is expected to be given another chance to turn North Queensland’s fortunes around, with the Cowboys coach reportedly set to stay on in charge for the 2026 season.

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That is according to a report from Code Sports, which claims that Payten will not be sacked and instead has been backed by key decision-makers at the club — at least for now.

It comes as North Queensland powerbrokers prepare to conduct a post-season review to understand just how the Cowboys went tumbling from fifth on the ladder last season to also-rans so early in the 2025 season.

The Cowboys are now yet to make the finals in back-to-back years under Payten’s reign and while the inconsistent results have put their head coach’s future under the microscope, Code Sports reported that it is his assistant staff instead who could be in the firing line.

Payten, however, is safe and while the board is expected to make it clear to him that better results are needed in 2026, he will be given a chance to turn things around.

Payten told reporters this week he was “disappointed” with the way the season had unfolded and said the next few weeks would be all about “building some confidence” ahead of the offseason.

“No injuries would be great and then once we get through the next few weeks in our reviews, it’s about decompressing a little bit and putting plans in place to make sure we’re not in this position again,” he added.

“It’s easier said than done, there’s a lot of variables that factor into it, but we will be looking at everything and making sure we get it right.”

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As for any specific focuses, Payten said ball control is a key area of improvement.

“I’d just like us to be smarter with what we do with the ball,” he said.

“Ball control has been a major issue for us, again on the weekend we had a lot of errors. That impacts other parts of the game.

“Where and how we hand over the ball is really important for us and we need to build on that the next two weeks.”

Cowboys football boss Micheal Luck threw his support behind Payten earlier in the month, crediting the under-fire coach for being “resolute” in the face of adversity.

“I’ll say this, and Todd will probably agree ... it’s probably been his toughest year of his tenure, with the absence of a lot of senior players and influential players for a long period of time, particularly when the going was tough,” Luck told Code Sports at the time.

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