<p>The Cronulla Sharks are back home and looking to further cement their top eight status when the Cowboys come to on Sunday afternoon.</p> <p>The Sharks most recently escaped Gosford with a sloppy 14-12 result over the Rabbitohs which was enough for a third straight victory.</p> <p>The Cowboys have conceded the most points in the league this year and their leaky defence was on show again during last week’s 38-32 victory over the Dragons. However, the win has kept them mathematically alive in the finals race, and with their next three opponents after&nbsp;<a href="https://www.sportsbet.com.au/huddle/nrl/predictions/round-22-tips-2025">Round 22</a> all currently sitting in the bottom five, an upset here would make things interesting.</p> <p>Jake Clifford returns at five-eighth in a swap for the injured Tom Duffy while the suspended Karl Lawton will be replaced by debutant Emarly Bitungane.</p> <p>For the Sharks, Briton Nikora and Siosifa Talakai are back in the starting side, while Billy Burns reverts to the bench for Toby Rudolf.</p> <p>Check out our Cronulla Sharks vs North Queensland Cowboys match preview for plenty of betting tips and predictions across a host of markets. From H2H to anytime try scorer and everything in between.&nbsp;</p> <p>Looking for all the latest news, analysis, odds, and betting tips ahead of this must win match for North Queensland? Check out our Sharks vs Cowboys prediction below.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h2>Sharks vs Cowboys Prediction and Betting Tips</h2> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>Head-to-Head Prediction</h3> <p>The final game of NRL round 22 sees the Cronulla Sharks welcome the North Queensland Cowboys to Shark Park on Sunday afternoon.</p> <p>The Sharks held on for a narrow win over South Sydney last week, which now gives them a small cushion in the top eight.</p> <p>For the Cowboys, even though they won in crazy fashion against the Dragons in their most recent outing, it’s a classic case of too little too late for Todd Payten’s men.</p> <p>The Sharks simply have more to play for here and they also get to play for it in front of their own, they get our final tip of round 22.</p> <p><strong>Betting tip:</strong> Cronulla Sharks.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>First Tryscorer Prediction</h3> <p>A bit of a smoky here, but we’re hunting some value by backing a half to be the first one over the stripe in this one.</p> <p>Braydon Trindall has scored two tries in each of Cronulla's last two home matches against North Queensland. That impressive record is enough for us to chance our arm on Tricky Trindall in this market.</p> <p><strong>Betting tip:</strong> Braydon Trindall.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>Over/Under Prediction</h3> <p>Four of Cronulla's last five home matches against North Queensland have gone over the total match points line.</p> <p><strong>Betting tip:</strong> Over total match points.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h2>Sharks vs Cowboys Anytime Tryscorer Betting Tips</h2> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>Braidon Burns</h3> <p>In each of North Queensland's last eight away matches, its starting left wing has scored at least one try.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>Ronaldo Mulitalo</h3> <p>Ronaldo Mulitalo has scored at least one try in each of Cronulla's last six matches against North Queensland.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>Scott Drinkwater</h3> <p>Scott Drinkwater has scored at least one try in four of North Queensland's last five matches.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>Teig Wilton</h3> <p>In five of North Queensland's last six matches as an underdog, the opposition's starting right second row has scored a try.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>Jaxon Purdue</h3> <p>Jaxon Purdue has scored at least one try in each of North Queensland's last three away matches against teams on a winning streak.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>William Kennedy</h3> <p>In four of North Queensland's last five matches as an underdog, the opposition's starting fullback has scored at least one try.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h2>Sharks vs Cowboys Teams</h2> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>Cronulla Sharks Team List</h3> <p>1. Will Kennedy</p> <p>2. Sione Katoa</p> <p>3. Jesse Ramien</p> <p>4. Sifa Talakai</p> <p>5. Ronaldo Mulitalo</p> <p>6. Braydon Trindall</p> <p>7. Nicho Hynes</p> <p>8. Addin Fonua-Blake</p> <p>9. Blayke Brailey</p> <p>10. Oregon Kaufusi</p> <p>11. Briton Nikora</p> <p>12. Teig Wilton&nbsp;</p> <p>13. Cameron McInnes</p> <p>14. Daniel Atkinson</p> <p>15. Jesse Colquhoun</p> <p>16. Billy Burns</p> <p>17. Braden Hamlin-Uele</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>North Queensland Cowboys Team List</h3> <p>1. Scott Drinkwater</p> <p>2. Robert Derby&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p>3. Jaxon Purdue</p> <p>4. Zac Laybutt</p> <p>5. Braidon Burns</p> <p>6. Jake Clifford&nbsp;</p> <p>7. Tom Dearden</p> <p>8. Harrison Edwards</p> <p>9. Reece Robson</p> <p>10. Griffin Neame</p> <p>11. John Bateman</p> <p>12. Jeremiah Nanai</p> <p>13. Reuben Cotter</p> <p>14. Marly Bitungane</p> <p>15. Kaiden Lahrs</p> <p>16. Kai O'Donnell</p> <p>17. Coen Hess</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h2>Sharks vs Cowboys Match Details</h2> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Date:</strong> Sunday, August 3, 2025.</p> <p><strong>Kick-off:</strong> 4:05pm AEST.</p> <p><strong>Location: </strong>Shark Park, Sydney.&nbsp;</p>