NRL Tackle: Luke Keary presses State of Origin claims again
Our rugby league writers reveal what caught their eye — good and bad — in Round 11 of the NRL.
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Welcome to The Tackle, where our rugby league writers reveal what caught their eye — good and bad — in Round 11 of the NRL.
EELS v WESTS TIGERS
LIKE: How could we go past the recovery of Wests Tigers Michael Chee Kam? In a frightening moment during the first half, Chee Kam had an on-field seizure and started convulsing on the ground. He was rushed to Westmead Hospital but later tweeted: “Safely home.” There was plenty to like from both sides. Parramatta didn’t play well but found a way to win while Wests Tigers showed enormous grit given they didn’t have one player on the bench for a short period of time in the second half.
DISLIKE: Russell Packer’s crusher tackle on Parramatta’s Clint Gutherson looked horrible. Packer was placed on report and later hit with a grade one dangerous contact charge. There was no suggestion Packer’s tackle was deliberate but it looked ugly. He looks set to miss just one game.
— Dean Ritchie
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COWBOYS v SEA EAGLES
LIKE: Manly’s new six appeal Cade Cust who tore the Cowboys defensive line to shreds with his clever playmaking skills. It was incredible to see this 21-year-old, in just his third game this year wearing the No.6 jersey, put on a clinic against the struggling North Queensland side. Des Hasler pitchforked the unheralded youngster into the playmaking role in place of Lachlan Croker three weeks ago and the move has proved to be a masterstroke, with Manly now inside the top eight on the back of two consecutive wins thanks in part to Cust. He finished Friday’s match with a try, a try assist, six tackle breaks and two linebreaks to steer his side to a 12-point win.
DISLIKE: North Queensland’s defensive resolve. The Cowboys definitely had their chance to snatch a win at home on Friday night but costly errors and poor defence killed off any momentum they started to build. It was great to see some grit from the struggling North Queensland pack, but attitude can only get you so far if you don’t make crucial tackles. By halftime, the Cowboys had 20 missed tackles to Manly’s seven. There is a glimmer of hope for interim coach Josh Hannay but this week’s clash with Canberra will truly test their defensive effort.
— Chris Honnery
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BRONCOS v STORM
LIKE: Melbourne legend Cameron Smith is showing no signs of slowing down and was at his scheming best against the Broncos. In his 422nd NRL game, Smith toyed with the young Broncos at times and laid a platform for giant forward Tino Fa’asuamaleaui to bag a double along with Jahrome Hughes and Josh Addo-Carr. The Broncos were mostly terrible once again, but young halfback Tom Dearden showed some glimpses of light in his first starting appearance of the year.
DISLIKE: The Broncos’ effort for 35 minutes was excellent but when the bounce of the ball doesn’t go their way they have zero resilience or mental toughness. That is a seriously worrying sign for coach Anthony Seibold who has stressed his team is fighting to improve. The Broncos have been clunky with the ball but they should at least show some defensive resolve when things go against them. Anthony Milford’s performance at fullback was questionable and he doesn’t look fit enough to wear the No. 1 jersey, leaving Seibold with another headache.
— Travis Meyn
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WARRIORS v ROOSTERS
LIKE: Roosters five-eighth Luke Keary proved again why he is so important to his side after leading the Chooks to another grinding win. Although it was a lacklustre performance by the defending premiers, Keary kept his cool to grind out a much-needed victory. His kicking game was exceptional – from long kicks into the corners to grubber kicks into the in-goal. No matter the scoreboard, Keary never seems worried and never lets the big moments get to him. He’s as cool as they come and deserves a sky blue jersey at the end of the year.
DISLIKE: What’s the go with Adam Blair? He played 40 minutes and only took three runs for 24 metres. Yes, he may have made 25 tackles, but he offered absolutely nothing in attack – at this rate he isn’t up to first grade standard. The former Kiwi international was seen limping out of Central Coast Stadium at the end of the game, but he won’t use injury as an excuse for a quiet game.
— Michael Blok
SHARKS v DRAGONS
LIKE: The Sharks are missing a stack of players. Andrew Fifita, Matt Moylan and Josh Dugan didn’t take to the field. Bronson Xerri is also suspended but still getting paid. They then lost centre Jesse Ramien in the first half before finishing the game without Chad Townsend (calf) and Sione Katoa (concussion). Despite being down on numbers, Cronulla kept turning up and overcame a poor opening stint to win. The victory is key as they look to keep their top eight hopes alive.
DISLIKE: How can the bunker get it so wrong? Are they trying to rush through decisions? Regardless it has been a horrid time for the match officials in the bunker. This time it was a Jack Williams try after just 10 minutes. Replays showed St George Illawarra fullback Matt Dufty beat Williams to the bouncing ball in the in-goal and grounded the ball. It should have been a Dragons line dropout instead of a try. Dragons coach Paul McGregor summed it up best: “how do they keep getting it wrong?”
— Michael Carayannis
RAIDERS v RABBITOHS
LIKE: The safe answer is Josh Papalii, and few could argue. But the right answer this week is Dunamis Lui. Often overshadowed by his front-row partner, the veteran big man has been in sensational form after he was dropped earlier in the season. Injuries have paved the way for his return and he’s taken his chance with both hands, scoring a try against the Roosters and setting one up against South Sydney with a pass most halves would have been proud of, only for it to be ruled out for obstruction. He then came up with a strip in the final minute to seal the game when his side was on the ropes.
DISLIKE: He’s one of the most naturally gifted players in the competition, but South Sydney’s Cody Walker has lost his trademark spark. Capable of conjuring something out of nothing, the five-eighth has been quiet this season, coming up with zero try assists in the past fortnight when teammate Latrell Mitchell was out suspended. This was meant to be his time to shine but instead he’s been a shell of his former self, making a stack of errors in the process. Mitchell returns against the Dragons on Thursday night; hopefully the Walker we all love is back too.
— Martin Gabor
KNIGHTS v BULLDOGS
LIKE: The brutal honesty of Newcastle coach Adam O’Brien was the best thing to come out of the shock 18-12 loss to Canterbury. On a rain-soaked afternoon in Newcastle, O’Brien tore strips off his players at the post match media conference. He accused them of having a “sense of entitlement” and admitted that he was “embarrassed” for the supporters who turned up in driving rain to cheer for their team. O’Brien also refused to use the key injuries to dummy halves Andrew McCullough (hamstring) and Connor Watson (Achilles) as an excuse. The Knights haven’t won back-to-back games since the opening rounds this year, and haven’t played finals football since 2013. It’s about time someone at the club told it how it was instead of just fobbing off what has become acceptable.
DISLIKE: It’s never nice to see an NRL player suffer a serious injury. But your heart had to go out to former Brisbane veteran McCullough when he was chaired from the field with a hamstring that was literally torn off the bone. One of the gutsiest and hardest-working players in the game, the tough dummy half will miss the rest of the season. What’s worse for the Knights is that Watson is also out for the year. Given the Knights are without first-choice dummy half Jayden Brailey, a soggy Sunday could ultimately be season destroying. It would be rotten for Newcastle’s diehard fans, who have gone through so much with this team, to now see a season that showed so much promise fall away. The players owe it to the supporters to take their coach’s words on board when they play Melbourne in the next round.
— Paul Crawley
TITANS v PANTHERS
LIKE: Gold Coast’s defensive effort. In a season when the Titans are conceding their most points (309) after 11 rounds, they showed plenty of defensive resolve on Sunday. After two tries to the Panthers in the opening 15 minutes, it appeared as if the visitors were going to put on a cricket score. But the Gold Coast’s tryline defence tightened up after that and held the top-of-the-table Panthers to just an eight-point victory. At halftime, the Titans had made 149 tackles to the visitors’ 93 and were only trailing by two points.
DISLIKE: The Titans’ forward pack needs a tune-up. No player in the Gold Coast’s engine room ran for more than 100 metres. Meanwhile, five Panthers forwards motored for much more than that. The Panthers monstered the Titans’ middle and finished the match with 400 more running metres. The inclusions of David Fifita and Herman Ese’ese next year will bolster the club’s big men and provide some much-needed punch through the middle.
— Chris Honnery