NRL Saturday match report: Storm sneak home over Sharks in another thriller
The nomadic Warriors struggled, Manly scored an upset win thanks to one man and two old rivals put it on again — get all the news and reactions from Saturday’s NRL triple header.
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There were no fans in the stands to see it, but the second Super Saturday of the season is in the books.
We’ve got analysis, reaction from players and coaches and everything you need to know about all three encounters — read on.
* Raiders 20 def Warriors 6: Read the full report.
* Sea Eagles 9 def Roosters 8: Read the full report.
* Storm 12 def Sharks 10: Read the full report.
OLD RIVALS PUT IT ON AGAIN
by David Riccio
There were no fans calling for Cameron Smith’s blood.
And there was no Paul Gallen or Will Chambers to trade a war of words — but the intense rivalry between Cronulla and Melbourne still has a pulse.
In a typically torrid clash, Melbourne — the champions they are — rallied from behind on the scoreboard to keep the Sharks winless in 2020.
Scoring one try each, a Storm penalty-goal with four minutes remaining gifted the visitors their victory.
Lamenting his side’s ill-disciplined second-half, Sharks coach John Morris described the defeat as “tough to take”.
He shook his head at the fact it was the second consecutive week Cronulla had scored the same amount of tries as their opposition after losing by four points to Souths last week.
“We did enough to win the game but couldn’t close out the game,’’ Morris said.
The loss was made even harder to swallow after captain Wade Graham left the field with an ankle injury in the second half.
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For Melbourne, this was the ultimate hit-and-run heist. Their NRL-organised charter flight was the same plane used by Canberra for their return trip to the Gold Coast.
Their 3pm flight was delayed by an hour out of Melbourne, leaving the Storm to race from Mascot airport to ensure they made kick-off at Jubilee Stadium, Kogarah.
Their return flight departed Sydney 90 minutes after their win.
Storm coach Craig Bellamy said the new travel arrangements for interstate matches — designed specifically by the NRL to limit players and officials being exposed to the threat of coronavirus — would prove an ongoing challenge for all clubs.
“It was all a bit different, we’re going to have to get better at travelling that way,’’ Bellamy said. “It doesn’t seem like a big thing, but when players aren’t used to it, routine is a big thing.
“It’s going to be something we all need to get used to.
“With all that, I’m not sure how we won that game, but perhaps just perseverance.’’
Trailing 10-4 with nine minutes remaining, powerful prop Tui Kamikamica scored the try that catapulted his side to the hard-fought victory.
Cronulla were gritty and classy at times, but ultimately ill-discipline cost them dearly.
In the final 40 minutes they missed 18 tackles and lost the penalties 6-2.
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PURPLE WALL
As ordinary as they were with a 65 per cent completion rate in the opening 40 minutes, Melbourne’s goal line defence was the overriding factor as to how they weren’t down by 18 points at halftime.
On at least five occasions, a Cronulla player was pulled back within centimetres of the try line by purple jerseys.
“Our defence on our try line was outstanding and it had to be with a lot of pressure there,’’ Bellamy said.
“We lost our grip on the game in the first half, but we improved our completions in the second half and played a bit more patient.’’
NEW ERA
Before the season, Cronulla coach John Morris was vocal about pinning the Shire club’s future on a host of young guns including Blayke Brailey, Billy Magoulias and Will Kennedy.
The trio gave a stunning glimpse of what lies ahead for the boys in the black, white and blue.
Running for over 120m, Will, the son of former Balmain flyer William “Bubba” Kennedy, was safe at the back and a constant spark for the Sharks’ attack.
It was his incision that provided Brailey with the field position to feather a beautiful kick from dummy-half for Magoulias to score his first NRL try.
“I’m really pleased with the youth in this side — we had seven or eight guys under the age of 23 out there,’’ Morris said.
“We just have to learn from tonight.’’
MOM’S THE WORD
The loan deal involving Paul Momirovski and Harry Grant is finally confirmed — after the Wests Tigers centre sat on the Melbourne bench as an interested onlooker.
Momirovski join the Storm and Grant the Tigers in the historic loan agreement, before returning to their respective parent clubs the following year.
However, Momirovski still has some work to do to make a name for himself.
Due to the strict security measures at Kogarah, Momirovski needed to talk his way into the ground - a fair effort given he was using his Wests Tigers “Player Accreditation.”
Melbourne 12 (T Kamikamica try C Smith 4 goals) bt Cronulla (B Magoulias try S Johnston 3 goals) at Netstrata Jubilee Stadium.
TURBO-CHARGED SEA EAGLES KEEP ROOSTERS WINLESS
by Michael Blok
Manly halfback Daly Cherry-Evans booted a field goal with four minutes remaining to give the Sea Eagles a thrilling 9-8 victory over the Roosters at Leichhardt Oval.
With the game locked at a try and two penalty goals each, the Sea Eagles skipper slotted a 25-metre one-pointer to give his side their first win of the season.
The back-to-back premiers have now lost back-to-back matches to start the season – another blow to their title defence.
Roosters five-eighth Luke Keary had the chance to put the Roosters ahead with seven minutes remaining but his field goal struck the left upright and the Sea Eagles capitalised.
“Players like Daly [Cherry-Evans] – that’s their moments and they execute. It’s very important to us,” Sea Eagles coach Des Hasler said after the thrilling result.
“He’s used to doing that and it was big for us … I was really happy with their performance tonight.”
TURBO CHARED
Cherry-Evans may have stolen the headlines, but gun fullback Tom Trbojevic was the star of the show and proved he was back to his brilliant best.
Not only did he score a classy try in the first half, he also ran for 156 metres and pulled off a couple of game-saving tackles.
The NSW Origin star saved a certain Roosters try as Luke Keary provided a nomination for ‘bombed try of the year’. The five-eighth casually jogged over the try line and just needed to plant the ball on the ground, but the Manly fullback attempted a desperate tackle and Keary dropped the ball.
He then saved another certain four-pointer when he pulled off a Scott Sattler-like cover tackle on Brett Morris, who was flying down the left sideline.
Trbojevic also scored the opening try of the night when he combined with Cherry-Evans on a clever set play. The halfback drew the play left before deceiving his opponents with a cheeky inside ball to his fullback, who had sprinted from the other side of the field in the lead-up.
“Turbo was outstanding at the back and he was able to produce,” Hasler said.
“It’s something he’s worked hard on [try-savers] and something he’s concentrated on over the off-season, and I’m glad it’s paying off.
“The make-up of who Tom is, he’s just a competitor, he competes and competes.”
IMPROVEMENT NEEDED
The defending premiers may have opened the season with two losses from as many starts, but coach Trent Robinson said there’s no need to panic just yet.
His side controlled possession and field position for the majority of the game but blew a number of chances.
It appeared gun centre Joey Manu had crossed for the Roosters’ opening try of the evening, however a Victor Radley strip on Jorge Taufua in the lead-up proved decisive.
The Bunker was called upon again moments later when Mitchell Aubusson strolled over, but the Roosters were denied again with video officials spotting a knock-on by young half Kyle Flanagan.
Robinson was disappointed with Keary’s game-defining blunder, when he dropped the ball over the line, but said his playmaker will learn from the mistake.
“’Kez’ [Keary] is a smart enough footballer. I don’t need to talk to him about that – he’s played the game for long enough. He’s scored lots of tries and he’ll learn that pretty quickly,” Robinson said.
The Roosters will now turn their attention to next Friday night’s derby against South Sydney.
“I want us playing our footy a bit more ... I saw some better signs. They were a high quality side and we defended better, which was good,” Robinson said.
“We were working on our flow and attack. We did create a lot ... but our flow can be much better. We can be much better than we are. We have to keep working on it.”
NO FANS?
With NRL games being played behind closed doors to limit the spread of COVID-19, there were no fans inside the venue, however that didn’t stop a handful of locals watching on from nearby houses.
There weren’t any spectators on the rooftops, as we’ve seen previously, however one resident went to the extremes of putting up scaffolding for friends to watch the action. And with the game going to the wire, there was plenty of noise echoing across the venue – with calls such as “get ‘em on side” and “he’s been doing it all day”.
MANLY 9 (T Trbojevic try R Garrick 2 goals D Cherry-Evans field goal) bt SYDNEY ROOSTERS 8 (D Tupou try K Flanagan 2 goals) at Leichhardt Oval. Referee: Ben Cummins, Belinda Sharpe
NOMADIC WARRIORS STUMBLE AGAINST RUSTY RAIDERS
by Travis Meyn
The Warriors narrowly avoided equalling a 100-year-old rugby league record in suffering a 20-6 defeat to Canberra on the Gold Coast as the toll of the NRL’s coronavirus crisis became painfully clear.
Not since Sydney side Annandale in 1920 has a first grade team gone scoreless in the opening two rounds of the premiership.
But the Warriors threw little at last year’s beaten grand finalists at a scorching Cbus Super Stadium on Saturday afternoon and it took a penalty try to get them their first points of 2020.
Who could blame New Zealand?
The Warriors flew to Australia on March 13 to face Newcastle in Round 1 thinking they would head home to their families two days later.
Instead, after suffering a 20-0 loss to the Knights, they’re on an indefinite Aussie adventure and the future of the NRL playing eight games a week hinges on them staying strong.
With the mercury nudging 32 degrees at 2pm local time, the conditions were far from ideal for teams from Canberra and New Zealand to be playing in an empty stadium.
At halftime the Warriors trailed 6-0 after Canberra veteran Jarrod Croker produced a deft offload for Elliott Whitehead to score.
A double blow within the opening seven minutes of the second half saw Sia Soliola and Bailey Simonsson extend Canberra’s lead to 16-0.
It took the Warriors 155 minutes to score in 2020 and their first points came courtesy of the Bunker after Kodi Nikorima was clearly obstructed by Raiders halfback George Williams in the 75th minute.
This was a game that never reached any heights and it’s not hard to see why.
The Warriors’ season has been thrown into disarray by strict border control in New Zealand and Australia effectively preventing them from being able to participate in the NRL if they return home.
If the NRL isn’t suspended at some point the Warriors face the prospect of spending the entire season in Australia.
That could be up to six months without heading home. It seems fanciful but that’s a genuine possibility.
The situation is so fluid that an NRL player could test positive to COVID-19 tomorrow and the entire competition be shut down.
Just how long the Warriors can sustain this scenario, and the likelihood of further losses, is the NRL’s multimillion-dollar question.
A group of Warriors players flew to Australia this week and entered 14-day isolation to bolster the squad’s depth ahead of what could be a long and arduous season.
If the NRL wasn’t tough enough in normal circumstances, it’s about to become a hell of a lot tougher for the New Zealand Warriors.
How long can they go on?
CANBERRA 20 (C Scott B Simonsson I Soliola E Whitehead tries J Croker 2 goals) bt NZ WARRIORS 6 (K Nikorima try C Harris-Tavita goal) at Cbus Super Stadium. Referee: Chris Sutton, David Munro