NRLW 2022: News for round 5, Eels knock Broncos out of finals, Roosters romp home
The three-time champion Brisbane Broncos have mimicked the men’s team after crashing out of finals contention in the final regular season game.
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The three-time champion Brisbane Broncos have missed the NRLW finals for the first time in the five year history of the competition, going down to winless Parramatta 28-16 in the first of a trio of matches at the Central Coast Stadium.
Remarkably, it gave Parramatta a finals’ spot albeit temporarily until the Roosters and Gold Coast Titans match to immediately follow.
Parramatta needed a converted try to claim fourth place, and knock out the Broncos, and captain Simaima Taufa barged over the line with nine minutes remaining to give them that margin, and the win was confirmed by Kennedy Cherrington three minutes later.
“There’s nothing there… through sheer strength, will and absolute power, the leader Simaima Taufa,” women’s rugby league great Tarsha Gale commented on Fox League.
A spectacular try from a short kick off, started and finished by opposing skipper Ali Brigginshaw kept the Broncos in it, but inexplicably she missed the conversion that would have put the Broncos in front 18-16.
In the end it was inconsequential with two late tries close to the line.
In a concern from the Eels though, Taufa reeled from her defining effort limping, adding to the drama of Parramatta’s win.
“I don’t even know what it is,” Taufa could not elaborate on her apparent leg injury. “They just stay out there (with seven minutes to go with interchange issues).”
Given the two teams also vying for fourth place and last remaining finals’ spot with the Eels, Broncos and Gold Coast Titans had just one win themselves heading, points differential kept Parramatta in the race.
The Eels just needing a Roosters win over the Gold Coast to qualify for the finals in just their second attempt having played their inaugural season earlier this in a catch-up campaign from 2021 due to Covid.
They were denied on for and against by eventual premiers Roosters last season who slipped into finals on two wins.
For the Broncos and coach Kelvin Wright soul searching with a wooden spoon possible for the NRLW heavyweights if the Titans prevail.
Until round four last year, the Broncos had lost just one match in their history and now have now lost seven matches including last year’s shock upset loss to the eventual premier Roosters at Leichhardt Oval.
One of several pivotal moments for the Broncos was when trailing 10-6 and looked to have hit back with two tries within three minutes to level the scores, but the second in the far south corner was fumbled by winger Emily Bass and disallowed.
With gun centre Tiana Penitani off the field it was a momentum switching moment with Parramatta taking a definitive 14-6 lead into half-time.
Parramatta were held up over the line a number of times keeping Brisbane alive right up the final ten minutes when their resilience faltered.
“Gutted for the players,” said Wright post-match. “They sacrifice a lot to play and put themselves in that position.”
“I know we’re a better team than that.”
“Devastated.” Brigginshaw said in tears following the loss. “We know we’re better, we were out enthused by a team that wanted to win more than us, that’s why it hurts so much, we put so much into sacrifices to be here today, and we put in a performance like that. We feel so disappointed for all our fans watching.”
Ahead of the expanded competition in 2023 with the Canberra Raiders, Cronulla Sharks, North Queensland and Wests Tigers entering the NRLW, a shattered Brigginshaw reflected that may help slow season starts going forward.
“With an extended season, you could afford to lose a couple of games and come back and put together team performances ... with the longer season, and more training, I think we’ll be able to (hit back)
BRIGGINSHAW-CHAPMAN TIE SCORES
Short drop outs cruelled the Broncos efforts to stay as close as they did, until Broncos’ captain Ali Brigginshaw finally found the flying Jamie Chapman, with a spectacular right on the 10 metre line, to send her flying up field towards half way.
The proceeding set of six would lead to a Brigginshaw try from a grubber delivered by her halves partner Tarryn Aiken, next to the posts, which the skipper inexplicably failed to convert at 16-all.
NO ONE ARGUES WITH ELLIE
Taree product, 21-year-old Ellie Johnston was an unstoppable force to give the Eels their second try next to the goal posts and take the lead out to 10-nil.
Her disdain for the Broncos defence from a 10 metre run up was obvious.
“Look at the intent. Gives the don’t argue to Shenae Ciesiolka, palms her off, and takes another two Broncos over the line,” Gale remarked on Fox League.
It was the first try for the former Under 17 netballer this NRLW this season, second overall, both against the Broncos.
PENITANI BLOW
Parramatta co-captain and former Origin centre Tiana Penitani went down innocuously in the first minutes of the match in a huge blow to the left-side defence of the Eels in particular, but Rima Butler di a sterling job to deputise and help the Eels to the win.
Within moments of Penitani struggling from the field, Ciesiolka strode over for the Broncos first try.
Her left knee strapped was not the issue for Penitani but was ruled out of the rest of the match with a quad injury, as relayed by Fox League.
Almost from the moment Penitani left the field, the Broncos heaped on the pressure to bring them back into the contest included the bombed try in the corner by Bass.
Penitani and Taufa could be injury concerns.
FALCON SAVES BRONCOS
Brianna Clark brought a whole new meaning to using your head on the Central Coast.
Charging off her own line, the Broncos’ interchange prop intercepted a pass from Seli Mailangi out of dummy half saving the Broncos in the 22nd minute with Parramatta still in front 10-6.
“The falcon from Clark has saved Brisbane there, they were in all sorts defensively,” called Ben Homer. “See I can use my head (she’s saying), I’m a thinker,” Gale replied.
EELS CUT OUT BRONCOS
If there was a pass that epitomised the performance of the Eels to try and save their season, it was pass that cut out two Eels.
Brilliance from the former touch footballer found the chest of Zali Fay and a try in the corner to give Parramatta a 14-6 half-time lead.
“The magic of Ash Quinlan, those touch football skills… little wind up, Zali Fay can’t believe her luck,” Gale admired from the commentary box.
That was one of her two try assists and three linebreak assists.
Knights dominant in finals tune up
With finals already secured for both sides, exact same win-loss record and rematch already booked for the first week of finals, Newcastle and St George Illawarra faced off in the last regular season game of the NRLW in Gosford, with the Knights comprehensive 30-8 victors in front of a healthy crowd of 6,214 for the triple header. For the record, Newcastle finished second in front of St George Illawarra (third).
The result was almost irrelevant, not even changing the finishing order on the ladder.
Along with the defending premiers, runaway minor premier Roosters and Parramatta Eels (fourth), the Knights and Dragons head north to Suncorp Stadium next Sunday for a place in the 2022 NRLW grand final.
For the Dragons and Roosters it would be their second grand final appearance this year after playing out the 2021 decider delayed from Covid in a 16-4 win to the tri-colours in Redcliffe, mid-April.
Debutant winger Jessica Gentle’s first NRLW try gave the Knights the half-time lead 14-8 after the two finals-bound combatants went try for try. And the Knights did not look back.
Minutes after resumption the Knights had their fourth to extend the lead to 10 through 19-year-old Emmanita Paki.
When interchange hooker Emma Manzelmann caught the markers napping and dived over for the Knights’ fifth try in the 54th minute, the intensity had come out of the contest.
At least from the Dragons’ side of the equation.
The Saints were without Kezie Apps with one eye on next week. Her leadership and defence was what St George Illawarra can ill afford to miss against resurgent Newcastle next week in Brisbane.
Apps has a tackling efficiency of above 90 per cent this season and on Sunday the Dragons missed 39 tackles to Newcastle’s 19.
“They’ll have the psychological edge heading into the finals battle with the Dragons in seven days’ time,” Fox League’s Brenton Speed remarked as Newcastle scored their sixth.
Newcastle head towards their debut finals appearance after their fourth win from five matches this season, turning around a winless first NRLW campaign earlier this year.
“And the Dragons are looking fairly fatigued. A lot of fatigue is settling into the Dragons’ team,” women’s rugby league great Tarsha Gale added as the Knights wrapped things up.
The formidable Millie Boyle was given an early mark 10 minutes from full-time and had ice applied to her right calf for a cork, but should be right for next week. “It’s fine,” Boyle went to lengths to emphasise. “It’s a training injury, it’s fine.”
BOYLE LEADS FROM FRONT
The revamped Knights went on perhaps the biggest recruitment drive of the NRLW era prior to the new season and one of the biggest signings was Jillaroos, Origin and former Broncos enforcer Millie Boyle.
She headed to Newcastle with an enviable record as a front rower with a previous season total of 379 post contact metres from her five matches, one of those missed to Covid. With Hannah Southwell injured, Boyle took the co-captaincy.
She reached 300 post contact metres for the season by round four this season.
And she added 82 post contact on Sunday and ran for 167m, with an early mark, nearing her almost 190m run average over those two seasons.
Roosters notch emphatic win over Titans
The Sydney Roosters have maintained a perfect record in their NRLW premiership defence heading into finals with an emphatic 38-12 win over finals hopefuls Gold Coast on Sunday, all set up by a first-half onslaught in Gosford.
After slipping into the finals of this year’s earlier NRLW season, in a catch up from a Covid-interrupted 2021, the Roosters have not lost a game since scraping in and put a full stop on that seven match run with a five try 28-4 first half.
It is the Roosters’ first NRLW minor premiership, breaking the Broncos’ streak of four-straight in the first four seasons.
Two finals wins to claim the title in April and five straight this season giving John Strange’s Roosters the minor premiership with a points differential of plus 98 points.
“Really happy with the performance ... periods of the second half that weren’t great,” said coach John Strange. “Spoke about (last week’s 18-16 win over Newcastle) in a bit of detail at training on Tuesday, Thursday around our intensity.
“There were some periods in the second half and that’s credit to the Titans, they’re a very good side.”
The match marked the debut of 19-year-old internet sensation Jada Taylor, filling the shoes of Sam Bremner at the back, taking just 12 minutes to open her NRLW try-scoring tally.
A Titans win was all that was required for them to qualify for finals, no for and against calculations needed, unlike Parramatta who snatched fourth temporarily with a win over the Brisbane Broncos earlier on Sunday at Central Coast Stadium.
Those aspirations for the Titans were blown away with a 28-4 first half by an understrength Roosters, resting a number of stars including mother-of-two Bremner and halfback Raecene McGregor.
“Rae could have played today but had a quad strain,” said Strange.
The replacements stood up including normal interchange utility Jocelyn Kelleher. The Roosters will now take on the Parramatta Eels at Suncorp Stadium next Sunday after the Titans and Broncos losses handed Parramatta a ticket to Brisbane.
The Eels clinched fourth spot incredibly with their first win from their five matches this season against Brisbane, superior for and against leaving the two Queensland teams stranded outside the all-important top four.
Strange is not underestimating the Eels.
“We snuck into fourth spot last season and went all the way to win it.”
In 40 minutes, Gold Coast’s final’s hopes were put to rest in the second of three matches to complete the 2022 NRLW season on the Central Coast.
The Roosters could afford to take the foot off the accelerator in the second half but still took bragging rights winning that 40 minutes 10-8.
Winger Madison Bartlett picking up a consolation double for the Titans in their final game of the season, with new coach Karyn Murphy finishing with just the one win since taking over from Jamie Feeny prior to season two of 2022.
A concern for Strange is a high shot by second rower Sarah Togatuki on Gold Coast’s Karina Brown with less than 15 minutes to play which forced the winger from the field of play under HIA protocols.
TAYLOR DEBUTS
Taylor had been lauded in the lead-up to her debut filling the shoes of this season’s returning NRLW star Bremner.
Her replacement went viral mid-year with her 109 metre plus effort, from her own in goal, in the under 19 women’s Origin for NSW match at Leichhardt Oval, even earning praise via direct message from the eighth Immortal Andrew Johns.
Hailing from Tamworth, the debut match for Taylor – described as a star in waiting by captain Isabelle Kelly during the week – was solid.
She had had three tackle busts and one line break on debut.
VERSATILE KELLEHER STARS
Back row utility Jocelyn Kelleher had been a key interchange player prior to today but was yet to start. However, demonstrating the immense depth of the Roosters this season, she slotted into the halves like she’d been playing there all year.
“Jocelyn Kelleher is killing them in that halves role,” Matt Russell said in the call for Fox.
Kelleher broke the line twice and set up two of the Roosters’ five first half tries.
“Joce has been training at half every session during preseason, in case something happened to Rae. I was really confident in her,” Starange said
“Every session she’s been in and out of halfback, as well as lock. Really happy with her, knew she’d be able to do that.”
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