NRL Magic Round 2023: Rabbitohs win 28-12 over Storm, Dolphins win 36-16 over Sharks, Panthers beat Warriors 18-6
Wayne Bennett may be the milestone man but a Dolphins rookie has stolen the show, scoring a double on debut and winning over fans with an emotional response after full-time.
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The super coach turned master magician as the Dolphins delivered Wayne Bennett a 900th game to remember with a 36-16 thrashing of Cronulla on Saturday night.
Bennett dipped into his seemingly bottomless bag of tricks to produce the upset of Magic Round as the Dolphins trumped the Sharks at a sold-out Suncorp Stadium.
Dolphins cult hero Valynce “Val Meninga” Te Whare bagged a double in a dream debut to lift Redcliffe back into the top eight.
The Sharks went into the fourth match of the three-day NRL extravaganza as heavy favourites after flexing their muscle with a three-game winning streak to swim into the top four.
But after 34 minutes the Dolphins led 30-0 in front of 48,068 following a blistering start that erased the memories of their lethargic past fortnight.
The Sharks will leave Brisbane with their premiership credentials being questioned after Bennett orchestrated another stunning victory in Redcliffe’s Magic Round debut.
Bennett, 73, spoke during the week about his love for Suncorp Stadium, or Lang Park as it was known when he started coaching in the late 1970s.
So it was fitting he celebrated his 900th premiership match with a memorable victory at the home of Queensland rugby league.
This win epitomised everything about Bennett’s coaching career and what he has instilled at the Dolphins.
The Dolphins were near flawless in a first half blitz against a title contender then defended desperately to deliver Bennett a milestone to remember.
Can Bennett make it to the magical 1000 mark? You’d be mad to bet against him.
“I did enjoy that,” Bennett said.
“It was good to play from in front, instead of behind. We had a very constructive meeting during the week and sorted a few things out.
“The boys bought in on it. We played two halves, which we haven’t played since about round four.
“We had three quality forwards out tonight and a couple of good backs missing.
“We give guys a jersey and they get the job done. It’s quite remarkable.
“No one minds where they’re playing, they just want to be part of it.”
‘MAGIC JOHNSTON’ CLOSES IN ON MORRIS WITH DOUBLE-TRY IN GAME 200
South Sydney’s big guns came to play at Magic Round. The Rabbitohs have been on the wrong end of the result time and time again against Melbourne, but Saturday night felt like a dramatic shift in their fractious rivalry.
With Latrell Mitchell and Cody Walker in rampant form, Souths put the Storm to the sword with a performance that had premiership contender written all over it.
The Rabbitohs flexed their premiership muscle with a 28-12 win and the great shame was that most of the 50,000 strong crowd had departed as the game drew to its conclusion, Souths having long secured their fifth consecutive win to move into second place on the ladder behind only Brisbane.
In the space of three weeks, the Rabbitohs have beaten Penrith, Brisbane and Melbourne. Scalps don’t come any bigger in the NRL. When Mitchell and Walker are in this sort of mood, good luck stopping them.
The Storm, the last team to beat the Rabbitohs five weeks ago, sure couldn’t. They were battered and beaten.
“We probably identified this block as a block where we needed to get some results and build some momentum,” Souths coach Jason Demetriou said.
“Like we said in there, it is a great start but that is all there is. There is a long, long way to go.
Alex Johnston jogged out for his 200th first grade appearance on Saturday night already entrenched as one of the greatest try-scorers in the game’s history.
He added to his reputation with a try in each half as he highlighted why he may be the finest finisher in the modern game.
The beauty of both tries was in their simplicity. Johnston has always had a knack of being in the right place in the right time. It served him well at Suncorp Stadium.
His first try arrived courtesy of a Mitchell kick, his second thanks to a slick backline movement that left him with a saloon passage to the line.
Johnston now has 171 tries to his name and is fast closing on Ken Irvine’s record of 212. Don’t back against him.
“Lot of talk about AJ and records and all that stuff but I just wanted him to have fun tonight,” Demetriou said.
“It is a huge milestone, 200 games for one club. It puts him in a special club. Really happy to see him get two tries.”
HIP DROP DRAMA ROCKS MAGIC ROUND AS WARRIORS STAR BINNED
An open-hand slap on Nathan Cleary, two sin-bins and some questionable referee decisions saw tensions almost boil over during Penrith’s 18-6 win against the Warriors.
New Zealand were down to 12 players twice in the second half. Despite this they still tested the defending premiers who overcame back to back losses with fullback Dylan Edwards starring.
Already 38035 people filled Suncorp Stadium to watch the opening game of Magic Round on day two. While it wasn’t quite a repeat of the 2021 Magic Round crackdown, the Warriors still had to make-do without two players for half of the second stanza.
Warriors back-rower Jackson Ford was sin-binned for a hip-drop tackle on Penrith’s Spencer Leniu. The Panthers were able to just land two points while Ford was off the field. Surprisingly, Moses Leota was not penalised for a high shot just moments later.
Ford did not return to the field after the sin bin after being ruled out with a delay concussion.
Then with the game in the balance interchange player Demitric Sifakula was binned for shoving Nathan Cleary in the face during a melee with 14 minutes left in the game.
The second sin bin cost the Warriors four points
Warriors coach Andrew Webster was left frustrated by a host of decisions.
“The Demitric one – I feel like his hand is open,” Webster said. “He is pushing him in the face. He was going to push him. Next thing he is in the bin … Hip drops are tough at the moment. Dallin (Watene-Zelezniak) comes to me (after a separate incident) - he has a swollen face and sore nose. No one has done that on purpose. He goes to HIA and nothing happens. I’m not understanding.”
ALAN JONES EXPLAINS HIS SHOCK NRL CAMEO
It has been 30 years since Alan Jones last held a rugby league clipboard but the former radio star could not resist a chance to sit inside a coaching box again.
The ex-Wallaby mentor and Balmain coach turned broadcast giant took his spot behind Canberra coach Ricky Stuart on Friday night.
Cameras showed Jones speaking with Stuart in the dressing sheds before the game while Jones also addressed the playing group after Canberra’s 34-30 win against the Bulldogs.
“It was very enjoyable,” Jones said. “I have known Ricky for a long-time. It was an opportunity to come out and see the boys.
“I watch Canberra on the television each week but that was something special. They have a bit of momentum and they will do well.”
Their relationship goes back almost four decades when Jones picked Stuart for the Wallabies 1987 team before Stuart switched codes. They have maintained a close bond ever since, having shared the same agent in the late John Fordham.
Jones reached out to Stuart on Thursday and told him he was in Brisbane for an event and asked to come to the game. Stuart offered corporate tickets but Jones wanted to sit alongside Stuart during the match. Stuart had no hesitation.
With a decorated coaching record of his own Jones – who last held a head coaching position for a one-off rugby union Barbarians clash against the Classic Wallabies in 2017 – laughed off when asked if a return to the dressing sheds had his juices flowing again.
“I don’t think I should allow that to happen,” Jones said. “There is too much of that and I’ve had plenty of that.”
It was the first time the 82-year-old has sat next to Stuart. And the Canberra coach said post-game he hoped it would not be the last.
Jones addressed the players after the game.
“I just had a word to congratulate them and thank them,” Jones said. “It was a privilege to be in there.”
Halfback Jamal Fogarty said Stuart spoke with a sense of pride when he told the group Jones would attend the match.
“Sticky (Stuart) said he had someone very important and special to him,” Fogarty said. “He has mentored Stick since the 1980s. We all knew of him and his time as a coach and then what he did for work – he was probably the best do to it.
“It was awesome for him to see what our club is about.”
BRONCOS STAR REVEALS REASON FOR PRE-GAME SPEW
Broncos fullback Reece Walsh has been caught out having a spew in the change rooms before his side’s 32-6 thrashing of the Manly Sea Eagles on Magic Round but the reason may not be why you think.
In front of a Magic Round record crowd of 50,077 fans, the Broncos put on a show, with the Sea Eagles’ lone try coming in the 77th minute of the match.
But before the match as the Broncos were huddled up for their final instructions, the cameras in the change rooms caught Walsh having an “up and under” into a bin in the change rooms.
Before the game, Fox League commentators Dan Ginnane said he believed it was from nerves as the Broncos played out in front of a sell out crowd at Suncorp Stadium.
It’s not the first time Walsh has lost his lunch before a match, as he was sick before the match against the Eels in Darwin a fortnight ago.
Asked if it was nerves before the match, Walsh set the record straight.
“It’s the sticky spray, it stinks,” he said. “I try to spray it on and not smell it but it got me and f**king … oh s**t.
“The sticky spray mate, it’s terrible.”
Speaking after the interview, the commentators understood where Walsh was coming from. “It’s a … very unique sort of smell,” Greg Alexander laughed. “Sometimes you can use a little too much of it.”
TAMED TURBO OPENS UP ON FITNESS CONCERNS
By Brent Read
Tommy Trbojevic has once again dismissed concerns over his fitness, insisting there are no injuries holding him back after his return for Manly ended in more bitter disappointment for the Sea Eagles at Suncorp Stadium.
Trbojevic tried hard against Brisbane. Damn hard. But his comeback failed to ignite Manly as they suffered consecutive defeats, leaving them in danger of finishing the weekend outside the top eight.
“I felt really good out there,” Trbojevic said.
“I am obviously not playing the footy I want to play at the moment but there are no injuries holding me back. There has been a lot of speculation about it in the media but I feel really good in the body.
“I just need to find some form.”
There was nothing magic about Manly’s display on opening night in Brisbane. They were battered by the league leaders as they conceded 32 points against the rampant Broncos.
Anthony Seibold’s return to Brisbane to face his former club ended with more heartache. The sense of devastation was shared by Trbojevic as his comeback ended in bitter disappointment.
Things just aren’t clicking at the moment for Manly or their megastar fullback. His night reached its nadir with 10 minutes remaining when he stopped, propped and threw a cutout pass for Reuben Garrick,
The ball was batted in the air and collected by Brisbane winger Selwyn Cobbo, who raced 80 metres to put any hopes of a Sea Eagles comeback to bed.
Trbojevic chased for a while before he put the cue in the rack. Even at is peak, he would have struggled to run down Cobbo. He had no chance in his current state as he works his way back from a series of injury setbacks, the latest a groin problem that ruled him out of Manly’s last game.
The Sea Eagles have preached patience with Trbojevic as he rebuilds his running technique and his body after an off-season visit to American conditioning guru Bill Knowles.
Manly coach Anthony Seibold defended the performance of Trbojevic.
“He had one week out, he was OK, but we didn’t give him enough opportunities,” Seibold said.
“We were all a bit frustrated out there.”
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