With a home final on the line for both sides, the Cowboys put on their best performance of the year to hand Canterbury their biggest loss of 2024.
The result means the Cowboys will face the winner of the final-round game between Newcastle and Dolphins, in Townsville next weekend.
Canterbury are now locked in to play Manly, and must wait to see if the Sea Eagles beat Cronulla on Sunday to steal hosting rights.
But there are bigger issues for the Bulldogs to solve after their second straight loss on the eve of the finals, in front of 32,437 fans.
Cameron Ciraldo's men desperately missed Matt Burton in attack and at the end of sets, with replacement Drew Hutchison taken off at half time.
Even still, Burton's absence couldn't overshadow how badly their middle was beaten and the side's defensive concerns.
With one of the smallest packs in the NRL, Canterbury have been able to use their mobility to their advantage for the vast majority of this season.
But they have now been rolled by two finals-bound packs in the space of two weeks, conceding more than 30 points in both games.
Valentine Holmes showed off his kicking prowess in the Cowboys' clash with Canterbury. (Steven Markham/AAP PHOTOS)
After Manly's big men did the job on them last week, the Cowboys repeated the dosage again on Saturday night.
They ran 750 metres more than the Bulldogs, Canterbury with just two play-the-balls in the attacking 20-metre zone for the whole night.
They trailed 32-0 before scoring their first points through Toby Sexton.
But that was their only joy.
Canterbury will get Burton (concussion), Josh Addo-Carr (ankle) and Bronson Xerri (suspension) back next week against Manly.
But there could be concerns for powerful second-rower Viliame Kikau, who was placed on report for a late shot on Jake Clifford.
Kikau did not make contact with the head, but would face a three-match ban with an early guilty plea for a grade-two charge given his poor record.
Winger Jacob Kiraz also appeared to suffer a shoulder injury late, but stayed on.
North Queensland, in contrast, are suddenly airborne.
They cut the Bulldogs to shreds down the left edge, with Heilum Luki breaking the line multiple times and scoring once when he ran onto a short Tom Dearden ball.
A try before the break was a piece of brilliance, with Dearden and Clifford sending the ball right before Jeremiah Nanai popped up an inside pass for Drinkwater to score.
And Valentine Holmes offered more magic, when Drinkwater ran it on the last and passed to the centre, who kicked ahead, regathered and scored.
Wingers Murray Taulagi and Kyle Feldt also bagged doubles, each claiming an intercept in the lead up to tries.
5°C