Tag: rugby league

With the business end of the NRL season fast approaching, Newcastle, North Queensland and the Sydney Roosters all scored key victories to stay in the finals hunt. 

Check out all the news, scores and stats below.

Newcastle Knights 26 def Melbourne Storm 18

Newcastle have kept their fairytale finals bid alive with a 26-18 upset defeat of Melbourne that breaks an 11-game NRL losing streak against the Storm.

On Saturday night, the Knights were gutsier and more entertaining than they have been all year, coming back from 12-0 down after eight minutes to steal a famous victory at home.

Melbourne forward Tariq Sims went to the sin bin for a high shot that proved game-defining — Newcastle scored three tries while they were a man up and never surrendered their lead.

NSW centre Bradman Best continued his blistering form since making his State of Origin debut earlier this month, while teammate Tyson Frizell celebrated his imminent contract extension with two offloads that led to Newcastle tries.

It will still take something special for the Novocastrians to make finals from here — they must win four of their final six games to finish the season with a winning record and even that may not guarantee a top-eight finish.

But defeating the fourth-placed Storm for the first time since 2015 could prove the confidence boost the side needs, and on the run home, they face only three more top-eight sides.

Sims went to the sin bin just before half time for a high shot on Knights halfback Jackson Hastings and, while he was off the field, the Knights had 90 per cent possession to turn a 12-10 deficit into a 24-12 lead.

Lachlan Fitzgibbon scored a spectacular team try just before the break, the ball passing through eight players’ hands before it went to the tryline,

Just after the break, bench prop Mat Croker chased a Phoenix Crossland grubber kick for an uncharacteristically acrobatic four-pointer.

Newcastle’s biggest challenge was always going to be keeping the momentum going when the Storm regained their full complement of players.

Team stats

Justin Olam scored from a routine scrum play to bring the scoreline back to 24-18 and the levee appeared primed for the breaking.

But as was the case in their win last week, the Storm lacked polish in attack. When they conceded an offside penalty in the final 10 minutes, Kalyn Ponga kicked for goal and the Knights held on.

Best again lived up to his name as the Knights clawed back into the contest.

He ran a beautiful line to cut through the inside of Reimis Smith for a try at close range and managed a one-handed offload that sent his winger Greg Marzhew over to give Newcastle their first lead.

Storm centre Reimis Smith left the field with a suspected torn adductor in the second half and appears set for a stint on the sidelines.

North Queensland Cowboys 24 def Parramatta Eels 16

North Queensland have claimed a sixth straight win, continuing their surge up the NRL ladder with a 24-16 home defeat of Parramatta.

On Saturday night, fullback Scott Drinkwater again starred and continued his purple patch of form, moving to six tries and 11 try assists in his last six games.

The Cowboys punished an error-strewn Eels side that struggled until the final 15 minutes, when they turned on two quick tries and flirted with a miraculous comeback.

Mitchell Moses and Clint Gutherson combined twice in the final minutes to narrow the deficit to eight, and a penalty with three minutes to go had the Eels poised.

But as had been the trend, errors let Brad Arthur’s side down and the Cowboys held on.

In front of a 20,710 crowd that cried for revenge following last year’s preliminary final loss to the Eels at home, the Cowboys ran in four tries to three and handed much-loved utility Jake Granville a win in his milestone 200th NRL game.

The win moves North Queensland to seventh on the NRL ladder, two points clear of South Sydney in ninth and the Eels in eighth.

Parramatta face a tough run home to round 27 and. making matters worse, Shaun Lane departed the field in the second half with a suspected dislocated elbow. The Eels were already missing Reagan Campbell-Gillard, Maika Sivo and Dylan Brown to suspension.

The Cowboys began in hot form with early tries via a scampering run by Tom Dearden and another piece of magic by Drinkwater.

Dearden scuttled across field until he found a hole in the line and found Peta Hiku for the opener, with Drinkwater floating a pass out to Semi Valemei six minutes later for their second.

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An error inside their own 10-metre line gave the Eels a chance they’d capitalise on, Sean Russell diving over in the corner to narrow the deficit to 12-4.

Both teams traded sets, errors and penalties through the midpoint of the half and a Drinkwater run from behind his own goal line seemed to swing momentum.

Off the back of a penalty, a simple hands play to the right edge put Valemei over to complete a first-half double, his seventh try in six games this season.

And when faced with a barrage of yellow and blue attack to end the first half, the Cowboys held their nerve even whilst a man down to take a 16-4 lead into the break.

The Cowboys were without Jeremiah Nanai (shoulder) and Griffin Neame (HIA) in the second half.

Sydney Roosters 36 def Gold Coast Titans 12

James Tedesco has turned on a masterclass performance in the Sydney Roosters’ 36-18 win over Gold Coast to keep the Tricolours’ NRL finals hopes flickering.

The skipper copped criticism for taking a break and visiting Byron Bay with his family last week after a gruelling State of Origin series and a season of scrutiny due to his club team’s poor form.

The break, suggested by his coach Trent Robinson, seemed to be just the tonic he needed.

Tedesco was everywhere at Skilled Park on Saturday in an opening half for the ages as prop Jared Waerea-Hargreaves and his fellow forwards tore through the Titans.

The win took the Roosters to 22 points and just two points outside the top eight with six rounds remaining. If they can replicate this kind of form they will remain in the finals hunt.

The Roosters had not scored 30 points in any match previously this year but they led 30-nil at the break.

Tedesco started off with a slick piece of ball-playing to hold a pass up to send Egan Butcher over.

Minutes later Tedesco slipped a ball to send Butcher careering through a hole. The skipper backed up on the inside to race away and score.

The NSW captain wasn’t done. Later in the half he burst onto a Luke Keary inside ball to send Nat Butcher over to make it 30-nil.

It was Harlem Globetrotters style by the Roosters who were dominant through the middle and creative right across the park.

Prop Lindsay Collins bullocked his way over and winger Joseph Suaalii leapt high to snaffle a bomb in a five-try extravaganza in the first half.

Tedesco put his body on the line to snaffle a Kieran Foran grubber with desperation on the cusp of half-time to showcase his mindset.

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The carnage abated in the second half, but Tedesco’s commitment didn’t. He came from the clouds to crunch Titans centre Brian Kelly and save a try.

The Titans, stuck on 20 competition points, had lost their previous three games by less than four points in controversial circumstances.

After playing so well for a month and not getting the rewards on the NRL ladder they appeared drained. They got what they deserved in the first half but rallied in the second with three late tries.

Titans coach Jim Lenihan replaced halfback Tanah Boyd with 20 minutes remaining and inserted electric utility Jayden Campbell off the bench in a sign of a positional move he may yet make permanent in future.

Roosters forward Nat Butcher was put on report for a hip-drop tackle on Titans winger Phil Sami.

AAP

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Manly kept in touch with the top eight with a desperate win over Sydney Roosters at Brookvale, thanks to last-ditch defence and two tries from Daly Cherry-Evans.

Earlier, the Newcastle Knights run riot against the Bulldogs at the Olympic stadium.

The Sea Eagles breathed new life into their sputtering season with an 18-16 defeat of the Sydney Roosters, whose own campaign is on a knife-edge as the finals draw nearer.

With his pair of tries, Cherry-Evans was a stand-out in Sunday’s see-sawing clash between two of the season’s biggest underachievers, before a late four-pointer to Ben Trbojevic sealed the result.

NSW captain James Tedesco was strong for the Roosters without silencing debate as to his State of Origin credentials once-and-for-all.

The fullback finished with a game-high 272 run metres and by backing Nat Butcher up on a line break scored the try that regained the lead in the second half.

He found himself trapped in-goal from Cherry-Evans kicks twice, though, and turned the ball over in the red zone just when the Roosters had the chance to land the knockout blow in the second half.

Announced on Monday morning, Brad Fittler’s team sheet will reveal Tedesco’s Origin fate, with Dylan Edwards and Scott Drinkwater vying for a chance in Origin III on July 12.

Jake Trbojevic made an early return for Manly, and the 15-time Blue put his own hand up for NSW selection with a workmanlike effort yielding 127 metres and 35 tackles.

Cherry-Evans helped the Sea Eagles hit back after the Roosters drew first blood.

Returning from an elbow injury, centre Brad Parker burst down the left flank and managed an offload to Reuben Garrick, whose chip kick sat up perfectly for his captain.

Just when Tedesco’s own support run looked to have put the Roosters back in front at the half, Cherry-Evans picked off an errant Luke Keary pass and dashed 40 metres to confirm a first-half double.

Joseph Manu had a busy night on the Roosters’ right edge.

His flick pass gave winger Junior Pauga the first try of the day, and with a burst of speed after half-time, the centre restored the lead with a try of his own.

But that was before Josh Schuster, fresh from signing a contract extension, put the youngest Trbojevic through a hole to help Manly finally make good on repeated chances.

The win moves Manly into 11th spot on the ladder, three points adrift of the eighth-placed Warriors with nine rounds remaining.

The Roosters finish the round in 13th, four points from the top eight.

They have now lost six of their last eight games and face four current top-eight sides in their last eight matches.

Roosters hooker Jake Turpin knocked himself out attempting to tackle Christian Tuipulotu in the first half and did not return after being sent for a head injury assessment.

Repeat offender Victor Radley was placed on report for a high shot on Taniela Paseka in the second half and is likely to face scrutiny from the match review committee, given his record.

Bulldogs blown away by the Knights

Newcastle Knights have relieved some of the pressure on beleaguered coach Adam O’Brien with a crushing, record-setting 66-0 NRL romp over hapless Canterbury.

Disgusted Bulldogs fans booed their own team as the Knights piled on 11 unanswered tries to snap a three-game losing streak and, hopefully for O’Brien’s sake, shift the coaching spotlight on veteran Wests Tigers mentor Tim Sheens.

O’Brien conceded last week he was most likely the next coach in line to lose his job if he couldn’t dig the Knights out of their mid-season hole.

His charges responded to put the Bulldogs to the sword at Sydney’s Olympic stadium and leave Sheens as the new front-runner to follow sacked Gold Coast boss Justin Holbrook to the coaching scrap heap.

The Tigers’ 74-0 capitulation to North Queensland on Saturday quickly sparked calls for the 72-year-old to step aside and allow club legend Benji Marshall to take over immediately rather than in 2025 as planned.

While the Tigers slumped to the bottom of the ladder after suffering the largest hiding in 88 years of premiership rugby league, Newcastle’s decisive victory eclipsed the Knights’ previous best 60-0 rout of South Sydney in 1999 and revived the 13th-placed side’s’ slim hopes of a late charge to the finals.

They are guaranteed another two competition points next week for the bye, then host the Tigers in round 21 in a real opportunity to continue climbing the ladder in the coming fortnight.

If Cameron Ciraldo wasn’t so highly regarded by Bulldogs supremo Phil Gould, he’d also be in the firing line after a dismal month for the Belmore boys.

The Bulldogs coach apologised to supporters after the game.

“A very tough day. It’s not a great moment. It’s an embarrassing moment, it’s a disappointing moment. It’s not what you want,” Ciraldo said.

“We knew things would be hard this year at different times but probably not this hard.

“But it is what it is. Clubs go through these times, teams go through these times and it shows your real character and that’s what I’m interested in right now — the character of our team, the character of our club and the character of individuals within that team and club.” 

After jeering Ciraldo’s side when they trudged to the sheds trailing 32-0 at half-time, droves of spectators filed out soon after the break when it was apparent there was no way back for the Bulldogs, who have now leaked 193 points in their past four defeats.

O’Brien will welcome some of the heat being on others this week after Kayln Ponga, Bradman Best and Jackson Hastings ignited Newcastle’s attack with inspired running games.

Ponga had a hand in six of Newcastle’s tries and slotted 11 conversions from 11 for a 22-point haul. Best bagged a hat-trick, while Hastings and hooker Phoenix Crossland each a double.

Despite his lively display, Ponga isn’t expected to earn a State of Origin recall after Queensland coach Billy Slater earlier on Sunday all but ruled out the electrifying fullback replacing the suspended Reece Walsh for game three in Sydney on July 12.

Ironically, Canterbury utility Matt Burton appears the player most likely to step into the NSW centres despite the Dogs’ latest capitulation.

But Blues coach Brad Fittler may be having second thoughts, while also be considering discarding Burton’s teammates Josh Addo-Carr and Tevita Pangai Junior for Origin III.

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