Brisbane captain Darren Lockyer broke the hearts of thousands of North Queensland supporters with a gutsy performance that handed the Broncos a punishing 23-6 NRL win over the Cowboys at Dairy Farmers Stadium on Saturday night.

Lockyer set up both of Brisbane's second half tries to maintain his side's six-game unbeaten streak after trailing by six points at halftime.

The Queensland and Australian skipper, who will again lead the Maroons into battle a week from Wednesday, was everywhere for the visitors after they were given a menacing greeting by the sell-out crowd.

Maroons selectors Des Morris, Gene Miles and Alan Smith were among the 22,477 screaming Cowboys fans that hadn't seen their side beaten at home since round 16 last season.

A 69th minute try to Karmichael Hunt and a field goal five minutes later by Brett Seymour sealed the 17-point win for the Broncos who remain at the top of the competition ladder.

Despite being on a losing side, Cowboys fullback Matt Bowen produced arguably the best game of his career to stand out from the other 15 Queensland Origin hopefuls on show.

Bowen demanded selectors pick him at fullback with a dazzling display that included the only try of the first half.

The livewire fullback sliced through a feeble Broncos defensive line to put the Cowboys in front after five minutes.

Josh Hannay's conversion made it 6-0 before he was cruelly scratched from the game in the 18th minute when he suffered a dislocated shoulder.

Hannay left the field in obvious pain and had the shoulder put back in place but will have scans later in the week to discover the extent of the damage.

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