NRL Live round 16: Dolphins vs. Melbourne Storm, SuperCoach news and analysis

Melbourne have held out a desperate Dolphins side to solidify their spot atop the NRL ladder, as a host of popular SuperCoach stars failed to deliver. See all the Winners & Losers from Friday night footy.

Another Friday night of footy is done and dusted, with a host of popular SuperCoach stars failing to deliver for their owners in the crucial Round 16 major bye week

Ryan Papenhuyzen (the fourth most purchased player of the round) in particular was disappointing, finishing the game on just 32 points despite scoring a try. Jahrome Hughes and Eliesa Katoa also struggled for most of the game, but managed to finish the game on 77 and 53 points respectively (all these points are calculated before countbacks).

Sua Faalogo owners would have been spewing after he was benched an hour before kick-off, coming on with just 18 minutes to go and finishing on 17 points.

For the Dolphins, Jamayne Isaako and Max Plath were highly purchased this round, and while they finished on a respectable 63 and 53 points respectively it is still a massive disappointment.

Lets run through all the SuperCoach winners and losers for tonight.

Ryan Papenhuyzen vs Dolphins. Picture: NRL Imagery

WINNERS

1. Jahrome Hughes (77 points) – While he struggled early in the first half, he came home on fire and delivered for his owners. It may not have been as much as SuperCoaches were hoping for after scoring back-to-back tons, but its still a decent score in a relatively low-scoring night.

2. Kenny Bromwich (79 points) – This really helps nobody given the Dolphins star forward is in just 1% of teams, but he is a winner tonight after producing his biggest score of the season and his second straight score over 70.

3. Trai Fuller (64 points) – A reward for the 5% of SuperCoaches who held the fill-in Dolphins fullback for the bye rounds, finishing the night with a solid 64 points. Not his best, but still respectable.

4. William Warbrick (75 points) – Arguably his best performance of the season so far in real life NRL, Warbrick also produced his best SuperCoach score of the season on the back of a try and two-try assists. Not bad considering he was playing on the wing.

5. Tyran Wishart (67 points) – A bit of a POD at just 13.8% ownership, Wishart has proven a solid replacement for Cameron Munster, and a handy pick-up for SuperCoaches after making some decent cash. He looms as a future sell but continues to deliver for his owners.

Jahrome Hughes struggled early against the Dolphins, but finished the game strong. Picture: NRL Imagery

LOSERS

1. Ryan Papenhuyzen (32 points) – While he impressed in real life NRL in his return from injury, it did not translate to SuperCoach points, finishing the match on just 32 points despite scoring a try. If you take that away he would have scored a measly 15 points. The nearly 7200 SuperCoaches who brought him in this week will be spewing!

2. Jack Bostock (2 points) – A sad night for the Dolphins star, forced off the field just minutes into the game after an ugly head knock in a tackle gone wrong on William Warbrick.

3. Sua Faalogo (17 points) – Craig Bellamy dealt SuperCoaches a devastating blow after benching the popular star an hour before kick-off, who didn’t get onto the field until late in the second half. He had some classy touches late in the game but really had little impact and is unlikely to do so going forward if he remains as a bench winger. A must sell next week.

4. Joe Chan (9 points) – The cheapie has become an auto-emergency nightmare, scoring just 9 points tonight, on the back of his 13 points last week. Any hopes of him becoming a nuff are quickly fading and he may be a sell going forward, despite having made very little cash.

5. Eliesa Katoa (53 points) – Maybe a bit harsh to call him a loser tonight given he finished on a somewhat respectable score, given he is the highest scoring 2RF on the season and has a three rough average of 85.6, people who brought him in this week would be a little disappointed.

RELIVE OUR LIVE COVERAGE OF THE STORM VS DOLPHINS CLASH BELOW

Dolphins star Jack Bostock was left unconscious after a tackle gone wrong on William Warbrick just minutes into the game. Picture: NRL Imagery

FULL-TIME: STORM WIN 30-24 OVER DOLPHINS

Craig Bellamy has extended his impressive winning streak against Wayne Bennett to 12 games, as the Melbourne Storm came out on top of the Dolphins in a seesawing contest at Suncorp Stadium to win 30 points to 24.

The Dolphins threatened to take the game to golden point twice in the final two minutes, with Jamayne Isaako and Connelly Lemuelu both held up just centimetres out from the line.

Storm trailed at halftime but surged ahead early after the break, stealing the lead with three straight tries before the Dolphins threatened a late comeback. But while the tries flowed for both teams, some of the most purchased SuperCoach players of the round struggled to deliver for their owners.

71ST MINUTE: COSTLY NO TRY FOR DOLPHINS

Dolphins backrower Connelly Lemuelu looked to have continued the Dolphins comeback after beating Ryan Papenhuyzen in a contest, but sadly in the act of grounding the ball he looked to have suffered a potentially devastating shoulder injury as he dropped the ball. But he somehow managed to stay on the field despite a hint of a shoulder dislocation.

In some other news, Sua Faalogo made his way onto the field for the first time tonight with just 18 minutes left in the contest. Can he have an impact? Given he is playing on the wing I somehow doubt it. A bench winger hardly screams SuperCoach winner so he looms as a must sell next week. In saying that he has had one good run so far, breaking the line before getting tangled up with teammate Nick Meaney.

57TH MINUTE: DOLPHIN GOES COAST TO COAST

The Dolphins have finally hit back, with Jamayne Isaako pouncing on a wayward kick from Jahrome Hughes, running the length of the field to crash over and score his first try of the night. Ryan Papenhuyzen almost pulled the Dolphins winger up short to save the try, but Isaako’s momentum was enough to get him over the line. And boy did his SuperCoach owners need that score, which sees him jump to 51 points. Papenhuyzen may be struggling in terms of SuperCoach tonight, but that impressive run was evidence he is clearly over his injury concerns and not struggling for fitness despite a lengthy lay-off.

53RD MINUTE: STORM EXTEND LEAD

The Storm’s second half resurgence continues, with Jahrome Hughes once again involved, putting Josh King over for Melboune’s third straigh try, and his first of the season.

Hughes’ SuperCoach owners can finally rest easy, with the halfback now on 70 points with about 25 minutes to go now.

48TH MINUTE: OH TPJ IS BACK ALRIGHT

Tevita Pangai Jnr has already created a stir in his NRL return, coming up with a monstrous tackle on Trent Loiero, with Storm players rushing in after a second effort from the Dolphins recruit. While the hit was perfectly legal, TPJ was penalised for being a mile off-side. Storm get another penalty right in front just minutes later and opt to take the two to point them in front by six points.

43RD MINUTE: WE’RE BACK

The second half is underway at Suncorp Stadium, and Jahrome Hughes has responded to my halftime rev up almost immediately, with a near pinpoint kick to Will Warbrick in the corner, with the star winger outleaping Herbie Farnworth, to give Melbourne the lead for the first time tonight. Hughes goes to 48 SuperCoach points for the game, while Warbrick overtakes Bromwich as the SuperCoach leader for the game so far with 74 points.

HALF-TIME: WINNERS & LOSERS SO FAR

SuperCoaches will be watching on nervously, as two of the most purchased players of the round struggle in the first half, while another popular player was knocked out early.

Jahrome Hughes was the third most purchased player of the round, but remains stuck on 36 points despite scoring a try, likewise tryscorer Ryan Papenhuyzen is on just 24 points at the break. Eliesa Katoa was the fifth most purchased player of the round as is on just 23 points. Kenny Bromwich leads the SuperCoach scoring at halftime on 67 points, but this really helps no one given he is in just 1% of teams. Trai Fuller is rewarding the roughly 5% of SuperCoaches who held him for the bye rounds, with 43 first half points.

Ex-cheapie Jack Bostock was forced from the field in the opening minutes of the game after a nasty head knock, finishing the game on just 2 points.

37TH MINUTE – HUGHES STRIKES

And just minutes after I said he needed to lift, Jahrome Hughes has crossed to score, after putting in a beautiful kick for winger William Warbrick, who managed to get a pass away back to his halfback to score for Melbourne. After scoring just 15 points in the opening 36 minutes, Hughes jumps up to a far more respectable 36 points with just two minutes left in the first half.

30TH MINUTE – NO HAMMER NO WORRIES

The Dolphins are over once again, this time through fill in fullback Trai Fuller, after Kodi Nikorima put the popular SuperCoach star into a whole through Jahrome Hughes and Nick Meaney. Fuller has excelled in the absence of Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow, who is in Origin camp for the Maroons.

Meanwhile, SuperCoaches will be stressing with some of the most purchased players of the round currently letting their owners down. With the just minutes left in the first half, Jahrome Hughes is on just 15 SuperCoach points, while Eliesa Katoa isn’t far ahead on just 19 points.

27TH MINUTE – STORM TIE US UP

The Melbourne Storm have hit back again, with Tyran Wishart scoring untouched, after Storm winger William Warbrick ran past Herbie Farnworth, before firing a bullet pass back inside to Wishart.

In other news, Tevita Pangai Jr is officially back in the NRL, getting onto the field for the Dolphins around the 25th minute. And in classic TPJ fashion, he was put on report just minutes later for a late shot on Christian Welch.

22ND MINUTE – DOLPHINS TAKE LEAD

The Dolphins have scored a try from nothing, with Euan Aitken scoring in the corner after a series of offloads. Herbie Farnworth took the ball from a high kick via Isaiah Katoa, getting an offload away to Kenny Bromwich, who came up with a miracle offload to Ray Stone, who then offloaded to Aitken. Aitken moved to centre following the injury to Jack Bostock, with Farnworth going to the wing. Interesting to see who will end up with the try assist here. Usually goes to the kicker, but given there are three offloads it may go elsewhere. For now it seems that it has gone to Katoa, while Bromwich was given a try contribution.

Bromwich remains on top of the SuperCoach scoring on 56, with Katoa on 37.

12TH MINUTE – PAPI HITS BACK FOR STORM

Ryan Papenhuyzen has hit back for Melbourne, with the Storm fullback crashing over in one of his first touches of the night. Papenhuyzen was a popular purchase by SuperCoaches heading into the round. Jack Howarth made a break down the sideline and passed back inside to centre Grant Anderson, who almost butchered it, but managed to find teammate Papenhuyzen. Despite scoring the try, Papenhuyzen remains stuck on just 19 points, given the line was already broken by Howarth. Melbourne almost crashed over again just minutes later, but centre Nick Meaney knocked the ball on before it was grounded by Tyran Wishart.

RYAN PAPENHUYZEN ON HIS RETURN! 😍

📺 Watch #NRLDolphinsStorm on ch.502 or stream on Kayo: https://t.co/B1ijnGXtqA
✍️ BLOG https://t.co/E0x17uuhBa
🔢 MATCH CENTRE https://t.co/PINXojhdPYpic.twitter.com/8J2eqNY7Ha

— Fox League (@FOXNRL) June 21, 2024

9TH MINUTE – DOLPHINS SCORE FIRST

They may be without a key player for the remainder for the game, but that hasn't slowed the Dolphins’ attack down, opening the scoring against Melbourne, with Kenny Bromwich crashing over against his former side.

The Dolphins forced a repeat set via some brilliant work from hooker Jeremy Marshall-King, before halfback Isaiah Katoa exposed Jahrome Hughes and Nick Meaney in the following set. The try sees Bromwich jump to the top of the SuperCoach scoring for now with 40 points, while Katoa isn’t far behind on 21 points.

3RD MINUTE – DOLPHINS STAR KO’D

Dolphins winger Jack Bostock has been forced off the field early into this game, after being left unconscious and clearly concussed, after coming off second best in a tackle on opposing number William Warbrick. Bostock was left motionless on the ground after the tackle gone wrong.

A massive blow for SuperCoaches, with Bostock in almost 12% of teams. His night is officially over, with the concussion deemed a category one. He finishes the game on 2 points.

8PM – KICK-OFF

And we’re underway at Suncorp Stadium … Can the Dolphins secure their 10th win of the season? Or will Storm be too good?

7:50PM – SUPERCOACH PLAYERS TO WATCH

Just 10 minutes to go now, with a host of SuperCoach relevant players in this matchup. The biggest talking point obviously is the late benching of Storm star Sua Faalogo. Originally named to start on the wing following the return of fullback Ryan Papenhuyzen, Faalogo was benched an hour before kick-off, in a blow for the 21.2% of SuperCoaches who own him and were likely counting on his score during the major bye round.

Speaking of Papenhuyzen, the Storm star is among the most purchased players of the round, with Scott Drinkwater for Papi proving a popular trade as teams scramble for a starting fullback.

Eliesa Katoa is another popular purchase, and given he has the third highest average of any 2RF, he looms as a keeper for the rest of the season.

Storm halfback Jahrome Hughes is the third most purchased player of the round, and while he has been on fire recently, he is more just a solid Round 16 bye round coverage option than a locked in keeper.

For the Dolphins, Jamayne Isaako is the most purchased player, and while he did score a whopping 151 points against the Cowboys in Round 9, 2024 has been a massive down year for the star winger. However he does have a 5RA of 52.6 so does come at a slight discount, but he has a break-even of 119 so is set to lose cash this week.

Max Plath is also highly purchased, and has been remarkably consistent when he manages to stay on the field. Some of his few poor scores this year have been as a result of injury or HIA. He gets through a ton of work and has some real attacking upside, but as an owner I may be a bit biased.

7:30PM – HISTORY NOT ON WAYNE’S SIDE

The Dolphins will be hoping for their 10th win of the season when they take on the Melbourne Storm, but history suggests a win will be hard to come by for Wayne Bennett against Craig Bellamy.

While a win would help solidify their spot in the top four, and see them surpass their 2023 win total, Bellamy boasts a solid winning record over Bennett.

In fact, Craig has come out on top over Wayne in 40 of their 70 clashes, including the last 11 straight.

7PM – LATE MAIL

Hello and welcome to our live SuperCoach coverage of tonight’s NRL clash between the Dolphins and Melbourne Storm.

The final teams are in and the Craig Bellamy has made some late changes, with Sua Faalogo shifting from wing to the bench, with Jack Howarth coming into the backline. Storm enforcer Nelson Asofoa-Solomona also comes into the starting side, with Trent Loiero reverting to the interchange after spending the week in Queensland camp.

The Dolphins are 1-17.

DOLPHINS ON THE CUSP OF MAJOR CLUB MILESTONE

Wayne Bennett’s Dolphins have been playing well above their weight in 2024 and have the chance to notch their 10th win of the season against the Storm at Suncorp Stadium.

It will have to be done without Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow and Felise Kaufusi however, who are on duty for the Maroons.

But Jesse Bromwich is a chance of returning from a rib injury to add some punch to the forward pack.

Sua Faalogo has been in hot form. Picture: NRL Photos

The Storm will be without Harry Grant and Xavier Coates but Trent Loiero is likely to be released from camp to play for his club side.

Ryan Papenhuyzen is a chance of returning from an ankle injury, with Sua Faalogo moving to the wing to cover Coates.

It’s an intriguing game for SuperCoaches, with Harry Grant’s Origin week interfering with almost 30 per cent of players.

The two teams have met only once before, with the Storm walking away with the two points in a 24-16 win at Suncorp Stadium.

Most owned players from the Storm and Dolphins.

DOLPHINS v STORM

Friday, 8pm, Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane

Dolphins: Jesse Bromwich is expected to return from a rib injury at prop.

Trai Fuller will play fullback with Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow on Origin duties.

Storm: Reimis Smith is expected to return from a concussion at centre, while Will Warbrick will continue his push to return from a groin injury.

Ryan Papenhuyzen is a strong chance to return from an ankle injury at fullback, if cleared he’d push Sua Fa’alogo to the wing with Xavier Coates in Qld camp.

Bronson Garlick is likely to play hooker with Harry Grant on Origin duty.

Originally published as NRL Live round 16: Dolphins vs. Melbourne Storm, SuperCoach news and analysis