Tongan rugby league great Jason Taumalolo stands out among the North Queensland Cowboys’ Paul Bowman Medal winners of the past decade as the club prepares to crown its 2026 Player of the Year.
The Cowboys highlighted the past decade of medal winners ahead of their annual awards night, with Taumalolo’s extraordinary record dominating the list.
The Tongan powerhouse won the Paul Bowman Medal five consecutive times from 2016 to 2020, an unprecedented run at the North Queensland club.
He returned to claim the award again in 2022, taking his career tally to a club-record six Paul Bowman Medals.
The medal is the Cowboys’ highest individual honour and is awarded annually to the club’s Player of the Year.
Taumalolo’s six victories put him comfortably ahead of some of the biggest names to have represented North Queensland.
His dominance is particularly striking when the past decade is viewed together: he claimed six of the awards during that period.
The achievement adds to what has already become one of the most distinguished careers by a Tongan player in NRL history.
Taumalolo has spent his entire NRL career with the Cowboys after making his first-grade debut as a teenager in 2010.
In 2026, he added another major milestone by becoming the Cowboys’ most-capped player and reaching 300 NRL appearances for the club.
The former Dally M Medal winner has also been one of the most influential figures in Tongan rugby league, representing Mate Maʻa Tonga during its rise as an international force.
The Cowboys are expected to announce the 2026 Paul Bowman Medal winner tomorrow night.
Taumalolo’s record of six victories, however, remains the benchmark for the club’s Player of the Year honour.
