Tag: live blog

Harry Grant and Cameron Munster are done for the night, Grant has grabbing at his groin but it’s nothing to be worried about, the cue is well and truly in the rack.

Fa’alogo flies high to try and take a cross kick from O’Sullivan but he puts it down and Averillo is there to pick up the scraps and score. Isaako converts and it’s 36-6 Storm. 

Melbourne aren’t slowing down, Hughes and Papenhuyzen link down the right, Katoa gets a little bit of space and he carries two defenders seven or eight metres over the line. He’s having a hell of a season the big man – that’s his 11th try of the season, he’s Melbourne’s equal leading tryscorer.

Meaney can’t convert but it’s 36-0 Storm. 

Bromwich moved into the top ten most capped players in premiership history in this game, which is his first at Melbourne since leaving the club.

But it’s been an unhappy return – he’s failed his HIA and is out for the night. It’s the same deal for Kodi Nikorima. The Phins are on tilt right now.

Grant ducks out of dummy half, puts in a nicey weighted grubber and Hughes is there first to score. This is getting ugly now, the Storm are right in the groove and their spine are all linking together brilliantly.

Meaney converts and it’s 32-0 Storm with plenty of time left.

Hughes cuts through from deep in his own half, his shorts get pulled down and his backside is hanging out but he gets the ball to Katoa, who finds Warbrick.

He’s rounded up, the Storm spread it left, Hughes puts a kick in for Blore that gets knocked back by a Dolphin – Fa’alogo chases it down, dives on the ball. The ref gives the try but it looks like it was right on the line as he put it down.

But they confirm the try! Wow, not sure about that one, we’re not getting any further replays for some reason so I’m not sure what they’re seeing there……

Meaney’s kick is well wide, it’s 26-0 Storm.  

Howarth makes a bust from deep in his own half and the Storm are on the attack again and eventually they strip them for numbers down the left again and Howarth strolls over untouched. He’s putting together a very nice rookie season and the Storm are cruising now.

Meaney bends the kick through from out wide and it’s 22-0 at the break. 

Macdonald hits it up one off the ruck and just powers his way over for a rare try. This is getting away from the Dolphins now. Meaney converts and it’s 16-0 Storm.

Hughes cuts through, he’s got Papenhuyzen, Plath tracks him down, next play Macdonald trucks it up and Kaufusi gets him but he’s offside and that’ll be a bin. Phins down to 12.

Grant slices through some back-pedalling defence and kicks ahead for Papenhuyzen, Katoa saves it but he knocks it on as he tries to do. Storm on the attack again.

They sweep it left but Howarth’s pass goes over the sideline. Phins hang on.

Apologies, some technical dramas slowed me down for a second there….

Melbourne are in again, this time through Grant. Katoa gets Isaiya Katoa one-on-one, the little halfback does well to bring him down but on the next play Grant goes from close range and scores.

The Phins have held the gloves up, but they’re their own worst enemy at the minute. Meaney nails the kick and it’s 10-0 Storm. 

The Dolphins fail to find touch off a penalty, that’s a coach-killer, and the Storm force a drop out off a Grant kick to end the next set.

They triple up down the left edge, strip them for numbers and Papenhuyzen fires a cut out ball to Fa’alogo to score untouched. Nicely executed. Meany misses the kick and it’s 4-0 Storm.

Blore throws a great offload to Munster and he gets it out to Fa’alogo, he kicks ahead and gets taken out by Isaako afterwards…this will be a sin bin at the very least I reckon, probably too many Phins around in cover for there to be a penalty try.

Wait, they say he was committed to the tackle when Fa’alogo kicked it! That’s unexpected and the Storm aren’t happy, but the Phins take the 20 metre restart.

Katoa and Nikorima combine to put Kaufusi through a gap, he dances past Papenhuyzen and has a look at the line but his offload inside to Tabuai-Fidow goes to ground. Chance gone begging for the Phins.

Dolphins kick off, running right to left.

Man, I still need to come down but the Storm-Phins game is almost upon us.

This match just took on a new implication – if Melbourne win, they’ll wrap up the minor premiership. Couple of changes for them, Fa’alogo is in on the wing and Wishart’s on the bench and Welch is there as well with Bradley dropping out.

For the Phins, Ray Stone starts at prop with Josh Kerr coming in on the bench and Tevita Pangai Jnr dropping out of the side.

Canberra have kept their slim NRL finals hopes alive with a stirring 22-18 comeback win against a Penrith side sorely missing star halfback Nathan Cleary.

With nine minutes left, down by two points and defending their own try-line, Raiders centre Matt Timoko intercepted a Jarome Luai pass and handed it to Xavier Savage to sprint the length of the field.

The GIO Stadium faithful could scarcely believe this was the same Canberra side that capitulated so meekly in their 42-4 loss to North Queensland last time out.

With their unlikely victory over the triple-reigning premiers, the Raiders pulled level on points with Brisbane and the Dolphins (26) and two short of St George Illawarra in eighth place on the ladder.

After Canberra coach Ricky Stuart slammed his players for being “spoilt” the week prior, Savage played like he had a point to prove.

As winds swirled above, Jamal Fogarty tormented Brian To’o with his howitzer of a right boot.

The Panthers winger just managed to hang onto Fogarty’s first two volleys but on his third effort Savage snatched a high ball above To’o, who misjudged the flight of the bomb and leaped too late.

Savage spun away and sped past Casey McLean before reaching out a long right arm to plant the ball in the corner.

Slow starts have become an unhealthy habit for Penrith, conceding first points for the fourth game in a row.

But they hit back through hooker Luke Sommerton and Daine Laurie either side of a Kaeo Weekes four-pointer for the hosts, to go into the interval with a 12-10 lead.

After James Fisher-Harris crashed over in the second half it looked like the Panthers would show their class and hold on.

But a try to winger Albert Hopoate and Savage’s runaway four-pointer sealed a memorable upset for the Green Machine.

Penrith never looked fluent without Cleary, who has been ruled out of the rest of the home-and-away season with a shoulder injury.

Stand-in halfback Brad Schneider never looked fully at ease and left the bulk of the playmaking to halves partner Jarome Luai.

Prop Joe Tapine was a standout for the Raiders, running for 129 metres with the ball and creating two line-break assists with his dangerous offloads.

With their second straight loss, the Panthers risk dropping out of the top four with Cronulla and the Sydney Roosters nipping at their heels.

AAP