NRL 2022: Sydney Roosters defeat North Queensland Cowboys 32-18 at SCG
The Roosters ensured James Tedesco’s 200th game will be one to remember as they continued their resurgence against the Cowboys, while the Sharks tightened their grip on a top-four spot with a big win.
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No team in the NRL era has ever won the premiership from outside the top four but history could well be broken this year if the Roosters continue to play the style of footy that saw them cruise past the second-placed Cowboys 32-18 on Saturday afternoon.
There’s still a chance the Roosters miss out on the finals and there are plenty of teams above them hoping that a difficult run home trips up the Chooks as they look to secure a spot in September.
They face the Wests Tigers next week before games against the Storm and Rabbitohs who have already flexed their muscles this weekend by holding Sydney’s premier western clubs to nil.
But if they can navigate their way through that then the Chooks loom large on the premiership radar thanks to blistering backline and a veteran pack of forwards who took it to their younger rivals at the SCG on Saturday.
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That was perfectly encapsulated when Jared Waerea-Hargreaves powered straight through young buck Jeremiah Nanai in the second half to help his side clinch a fifth win on the trot.
“They don’t expect to score tries, but if the door gets opened then they want to go through it,” Trent Robinson said of his big men.
SUPER SUAALII
There were a few good judges who were questioning whether Joseph Suaalii was the real deal after a relatively quiet start to the season.
But the only question now is just how far this kid can go after another dominant display on the right wing.
On a day the Roosters celebrated James Tedesco’s 200th NRL game, Suaalii showed their supporters why they will lose nothing when the Blues skipper eventually retires in a few years.
The teen sensation opened the scoring and had some powerful carries, but it’s his stinging defence that has been the most impressive facet of his game that season.
Suaalii blindsided Scott Drinkwater with a brutal shot and then hit Tom Dearden with such ferocity that the ball jolted free and went dead for a line dropout.
He was placed on report for a high shot on Dearden later in the first half but shouldn’t have too much to worry about when the charges are released.
VICTOR THE ASSISTER
We’ve seen him inflict damage on unsuspecting victims throughout his career but Victor Radley ditched the brutal hits and brought his soft hands to the SCG to catch the Cowboys off guard.
The ball-playing lock had only set up one try this season but he had a field day with two assists in the opening 16 minutes to help the hosts race out to a 10-0 lead.
The first was a glorious ball over the top that punished North Queensland’s rushing defence and allowed Suaalii to stroll over for the first try before Radley played short for Matt Lodge to score his first try in a Roosters jersey.
“He plays the game tough, but he’s probably one of the best ball-playing locks in the game,” James Tedesco said.
“It frees me up and it frees our halves up.”
HANG ON
North Queensland’s hopes of stealing the minor premiership from Penrith took a major hit with the Cowboys now six points behind the ladder-leaders with just three rounds remaining.
It’s been a meteoric rise from the team that had the worst defence in the NRL just 12 months and the pressure is now on to ensure they finish in the top two so they can have two games in Townsville in the finals.
“We got punched in the face a few times and we looked for our teammate to do something rather than come together as a team,” Todd Payten said.
Big guns Jason Taumalolo and Valentine Holmes were just two of the players kept quiet on a heartbreaking Saturday, but the Cowboys will be seeking answers after the Roosters were awarded a crucial second-half try even though Lodge held on to Griffin Neame in the scrum.
That interference allowed Sam Verrills to stroll over for the first of his two tries but should never have been given the green light by the Bunker.
“I thought it was the wrong decision,” Payten said. “If you’re impeding the defender from making a tackle, it shouldn’t have been a try.”
Sharks keep pace with the big guns
-Matt Cleary
After the Roosters rolled over North Queensland, Melbourne Storm kept the Panthers to nil at Penrith and Rabbitohs ace Latrell Mitchell told the world “we’re coming”, Cronulla Sharks needed to make a statement in Tamworth on Saturday night.
And at a sold-out Scully Park they did just that, obliterating Wests Tigers 36-12 and telling fans, pundits and corporate bookmakers “we’re now eight wins in our last nine starts; don’t rule us out of your premiership calculations”.
Only a fool would – the Sharks run home is against bottom eight sides Manly, Canterbury and Newcastle. They now look a genuine threat of finishing second and taking a home final to Woolooware’s PointsBet Stadium.
Cronulla captain Wade Graham tried manfully to keep a lid on expectations.
“We haven’t talked about who’s in what position [on the ladder],” he said.
“It’s more about the opportunity that’s presented itself and what’s in front of us. It’s about constantly improving and trying to make sure that irrespective of opponent we give the best account of ourselves.
“Obviously it’s hard to ignore the possibility [of second spot]. But we can’t control the other fixtures, we’ve just to control our own.”
If Cronulla’s statement in the first half was “we belong”, the Tigers appeared to be: “Mentally, we’re in Bali.”
Before the match interim Tigers coach Brett Kimmorley had challenged his men to muscle up and compete physically in the middle. It did not happen. Instead the Sharks forwards, led by barnstorming try-scorers Royce Hunt and Braden Hamlin-Uele, ran through the Tigers like Clydesdales through wheat.
“We lost it in the first half,” Kimmorley said. “They’re a good footy side. They’re well drilled they’re tough, they’re physical. At 26-6 at halftime the game was over.”
Kimmorley had told his men pre-match that the first 20 minutes had nothing to do with “shapes, structures and skill”.
“It’s about getting into the game, the toughness of the grind, getting a feel for the game of football and earning the right to play footy.
“They did that better than us today. They setup the whole match in the first 20 minutes and suffocated the game,” Kimmorley said.
A concern for the Sharks is in-form front-rower Toby Rudolph who did the splits and went off in the 65th minute with a knee injury. Sharks coach Craig Fitzgibbon said that Rudolph’s injury was an MCL though the extent wouldn’t be known until scans.
HYNES AND MIGHTY
Without regular halves partner Matt Moylan or free-running fullback Will Kennedy, Hynes was the central fulcrum for all that was good about Cronulla’s attack. He ran 23 times for 205 metres (33m post-contact) and broke two tackles. As a playmaker he recorded one try assist and two linebreak assists. He kicked 13 times for 291m. He also sent a fine and heart-felt shout-out to Paul Green’s family.
FINUCANE FITZ GOOD
The Sharks welcomed back Dale Finucane in black, white and vivid cerulean following suspension for a tackle that nearly tore off Stephen Crichton’s ear. The veteran wasn’t gun-shy, however, his telling defence matched by typically industrious attack. Finucane’s burly example is a big reason – along with Craig Fitzgibbon’s coaching – that the Sharks have the third-best defence in the league.
MISSING TIGERS
While Luke Garner channelled a young Brad Clyde and scored a nice try, and Laurie and Brent Naden had their moments, and the second half was more competitive, it’s hard to envisage anything but more pain for long-suffering Tigers fans next season, even with the injection of runaway bride Isaiah Papali’I.
“We’re battling at the moment,” Kimmorley said. “We’re in pain … it’s a tough time.”
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