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NRL results and round-up

Rugby League mistake

Another fantastic round of NRL action has been and gone.

There were some shock results with the Parramatta Eels being left with Easter egg on their face against Wests on Monday as the Tigers, led by Jackson Hastings, look to resurrect their season in the shock result of the game.

But that was just one of eight great matches, so here’s our weekly round-up.

Canberra Raiders 12-18 North Queensland Cowboys
The North Queensland Cowboys produced a stunning second half comeback to condemn the Canberra Raiders to a third consecutive defeat. The Raiders raced away to a 12-point lead in the opening quarter of the game as it looked like they would be too good at home for the Cowboys, but they were unable to add more points in the first half which proved costly. Heilum Luki scored early in the second stanza for the Cowboys to start they comeback as the Raiders had no answer to their second half intensity. Tries from Valentine Holmes and Jeremiah Nanai in quick succession completed the comeback for North Queensland to leave Ricky Stuart and his Raiders side with big problems that need solving if they want to make the playoffs this year.

South Sydney Rabbitohs 36-16 Canterbury Bulldogs
A hat trick from sensational hooker Damien Cook proved the difference as the South Sydney Rabbitohs had too much class for the Canterbury Bulldogs. Brent Naden opened the scoring for the Bulldogs but shortly after Jeremy Marshall-King was sin binned for Canterbury and the Rabbitohs capitalised on their man advantage, with two tries for the electric Cook and one for Alex Johnstone. Souths continued their period of pressure early in the second half with Johnstone crossing for his second. Damien Cook completed his hat trick in the 65th minute to round off what was a stunning performance and return to form for the New South Wales dummyhalf. A first try of the season for Josh Addo-Carr gave the Bulldog fans something to be hopefully about after his slow start to the season but they were ultimately well beaten by a Premiership contender in the Bunnies.

Penrith Panthers 40-12 Brisbane Broncos
Nathan Cleary oozed class as he led his Penrith team to a dominant win against the Brisbane Broncos. In a tight opening 10 minutes it was Brisbane who scored first, some nice work by Kotoni Staggs set up Tesi Niu for game’s opening try. Their lead was short lived as Jarome Luai danced his way to the line for a try, Scott Sorenson also showed great footwork as he scored the Panthers second try of the game to give them a six-point lead at half time. Both teams were reduced to 12 men early in the second half as Dylan Edwards and Keenan Palasia were sent to the sin bin for pushing each other in the face and it was the Panthers who made the most of their opportunities against a broken defensive line as wingers Charlie Staines and Taylan May crossed the try line. The Panthers extended their advantage with a Liam Martin try before Staggs got a well-deserved score for the Broncos who had played well but just came up against an in-form Penrith side who will beat most teams this season. Late tries for Spencer Leniu and Izack Tago completed the scoring for the Panthers as they remain undefeated in 2022.

Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles 26-18 Gold Coast Titans
Manly won their fourth consecutive game after they withstood a spirited second half display from the Gold Coast Titans. The Sea Eagles opened the scoring through their powerhouse backrower Haumole Olakau’atu after he pounced onto a Daly Cherry-Evans kick. They doubled their led shortly after with stand in fullback Reuben Garrick waltzing through the Titans’ defence to score untouched. The Impressive Olakau’atu crashed over late in the first half for his second score of the game as Manly looked set for an 18-point lead before halftime until Jamayne Isaako scored his first try for his new club to reduce the deficit. Kieran Foran danced over for the Sea Eagles early in the second half to extend their lead before the Titans scored tries from Brian Kelly, David Fifita and Tino Fa’asuamaleaui which brought the Gold Coast back into the game. Manly, who had been poor in the second half, got a penalty in front of the sticks to push their advantage out to eight points and the Titans were unable to mount any more of a comeback. The Sea Eagles are in a good run of form at the moment and with star fullback Tom Trbojevic set to return soon. They look a real contender for the Premiership this campaign.

Melbourne Storm 34-18 Cronulla Sharks
The Melbourne Storm proved too good for the Cronulla Sharks in an early season top of the table clash. Both teams came into this game in good form, particularly the Cronulla Sharks who have surprised everyone with the way they have started their season and this was their big test against a perennial contender in the Storm. Cameron Munster was outstanding all evening for Melbourne and his lob pass got the scoring started as he sent Justin Olam over to score. Cronulla replied with a classy try of their own as a number of expansive plays ended with Siosifa Talakai crossing for a try. Munster then scored an outrageous solo effort as he sold three Sharks players with dummy passes on his way to scoring a remarkable try which gave the Storm a four-point lead at half time. The Sharks made an error with the second half kick-off which gave Melbourne a scrum in great field position which is something you can’t afford to do against Craig Bellamy’s men and they were punished off the first play as Olam got his second try. The Sharks responded through Ronaldo Mulitalo with a neat finish in the corner but they were always chasing the game and Munster continued to toy with their defence as he broke through once again and sent Ryan Papenhuyzen away to score. Late tries for either team through Mulitalo again and Harry Grant extended the score line in a game where Melbourne showed their strength as their big playmakers stood up once again.

Sydney Roosters 22-14 New Zealand Warriors
The Warriors came into this game in good form off the back of some solid results but it was the Sydney Roosters who got the 2 competition points in a tightly fought contest. New Zealand raced out to an eight-point lead thanks to a penalty from Reece Walsh and a try from Edward Kosi as they enjoyed the better of the opening stages. Daniel Tupou got the Roosters on the board with a well worked try from a scrum and a penalty kick one minute into the second half made the scores level. The Roosters took the lead for the first time at the SCG as Kevin Naiqama crossed for a try after the Warriors failed to deal with a high kick. They extended their lead further as Sam Walker danced through would-be Warriors defenders to score but the deficit was cut once again by the spirited Warriors side after Dallin Watene-Zelezniak scored from an unbelievable kick from Walsh. A penalty for the Roosters pushed their lead out to eight and it remained that way until the final whistle as the Roosters made it three wins on the spin.

St George Illawarra Dragons 21-16 Newcastle Knights
St George Illawarra Dragons won for only the second time this season and for the first time since Round One as they overcame the Newcastle Knights. Andrew McCullough opened the scoring for the Dragons with a dart from dummy half, both sides then had chances to score in the first half but were stopped by good defence. Eventually, Kalyn Ponga broke the Dragons line and offloaded to Enari Tuala for the winger to score untouched. The Knights then opened the scoring for the second half as Dane Gagai finished off a flowing move from Newcastle. Jack Bird and then Mathew Feagai scored two quick tries for the Dragons to put them back in the lead as both teams traded momentum. Kalyn Ponga got a well-deserved try for himself which tied up the scores at 16 apiece. The Dragons took a late lead through a Zac Lomax drop goal before the game was fully settled by a late Feagai try to give the Dragons a much-needed win.

Parramatta Eels 20-21 Wests Tigers
The Wests Tigers got their first win of 2022 as they produced the upset of the season by beating the high-flying Parramatta Eels. Jackson Hastings was given the number 7 jersey this week and it worked wonders for the Tigers as he orchestrated them to this victory, a stroke of genius by coach Michael Maguire. They opened the scoring through backrow Luciano Leilua before the Eels responded through captain Clinton Gutherson as both teams looked like scoring every time they had the ball. It was the Tigers who did get the next try of the game as Luke Brooks’ floating pass found David Nofoaluma who, despite work to do, found his way to the tryline. The winger quickly doubled his tally after a perfect kick from Hastings to give his team an eight-point lead. The Eels scored just before half time through Isaiah Papali’I to cut the deficit to four points at the break. The Tigers got a try early in the second half to give themselves a 10 point advantage but Parramatta wouldn’t go away as tries from Reed Mahoney and Marata Niukore brought the scores level going into the final 10 minutes. Mitchell Moses had a chance to win the game for the Eels but missed his drop goal attempt. Hastings didn’t let his opportunity go to waste as he nailed his field goal from 35 metres out to help win the game for his new team. A massive result for the Tigers which they will now need to back up in the coming weeks.

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