The highs and lows from Round 7 of the 2023 NRL NT season
From dominant runs continuing to injury woes there was plenty going on in the latest round of NRL NT action. Check out all the key talking points from Round 7.
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There was plenty to enjoy in NRL NT Round 7 whether it was a massive bounce-back from the premiers or the Brothers women’s dominant run carrying on.
In the men’s competition Litchfield remain undefeated while Sharks and Palmerston both picked up wins.
And over in the women’s tournament it was the unbeaten Brothers, Sharks and Litchfield who took out victories.
Here are all the major talking points from Round 7.
Can anyone beat the Brothers women?
Over the past three seasons the big match of the women’s comp has been Brothers vs Palmerston, and once again for the Bantiba Shield that was the case.
However, even at home the 2021 premiers Raiders couldn’t break Brothers unbeaten streak with the blue and white outfit running out the 30-8 winners.
Their winning streak now dates back to Round 1 of the 2022 season and considering their depth year on year they don’t seem to be slowing down anytime soon.
Even with captain Bianca Scrymgour out the young Brothers outfit were able to dominate the second best team in the league.
Ivana Schober has stepped in at captain in her stead leading by example, while Ellie Niki continues to be a rock-solid contributor in both attack and defence.
But Latoniya Norris has been the standout of recent rounds scoring a hat trick on the weekend pushing her try total to 11 from seven matches.
It’s a run of form reminiscent of her 2020 Gaynor Maggs medal winning season and she will be hard to ignore for the refs once again.
If second-placed Palmerston are being beaten in this fashion the question becomes not when will Brothers be beaten but if it’s possible at all.
At the moment they’re tracking for another unbeaten season, it all comes down to how their strength in depth compensates for injuries.
Job not done for Sharks despite results
For the second time in as many weeks Sharks have held their opponents scoreless while laying on try after try of their own.
Northern Sharks came into this match-up as the heavy favourites following their 74-0 drubbing of the reigning premiers the week before.
Their ruthless intent in both attack and defence in their 64-0 win against Nightcliff was a sign this is a team finally coming into their own after a brief wobble earlier in the season.
However, despite these impressive results players were quick to dismiss any favouritism knowing these score lines would mean nothing if they didn’t score wins against Litchfield and Brothers.
Former Canterbury player Brent Crisp was absolutely everywhere setting up tries with clever passing or cross field kicks while scoring twice himself.
It was a best on ground display which proved his importance to the side while captain and halves partner Mitch Burke also played a key role.
Whether it’s Bailey Zaro and Samuel Pearson around the edges or Kieren Danovaro Sharks aren’t short of scoring options.
They’ve built their way into the season and again established themselves as one of the sides to beat.
But the true test comes next against the still undefeated Litchfield Bears, who came from behind to upset the Sharks on their last meeting.
Palmerston bounce back in style
If ever a side was in need of a bounce-back victory it was Palmerston after being hammered 74-0 at home by their grand final rivals Sharks.
It was a low point for the Raiders who were down a couple of players from their premiership winning side, and one they needed to respond to.
Palmerston managed just that against the previously second-placed Brothers winning 22-16 proving they still have a part to play in this year’s competition.
Club newcomer Sam Ogden, who had missed much of the early season through injury, was very impressive from fullback scoring two tries.
And his scores were complimented by further tries from Waisale Lacabuka, the returning Tevita Kanalagi, Ross Larsen and David Russell, while Blake Fletcher was accurate with the boot.
Captain Ed Murphy and the dynamic Abel Shirley still need to return, but this win was proof Palmerston can take it to anyone when they have their main squad on field and firing.
Brothers weren’t far out of the contest at all, though drop to third after dropping their second close-run match in a row.
The Brethren have all the pieces, and plenty of youngsters breaking in, but they have only been dominant once against a top side, when they beat Sharks in Round 5.
On that occasion their hard-nosed defence and intensity caught Sharks off guard, but it’s a dominant display they’ve yet to replicate.
Nightcliff hurting for playing depth
Dragons have been the major strugglers of the 2023 season having not won since their opening round battle against South Darwin.
In many ways their woes have come down to player shortages with many of their stars missing due to work commitments or injury.
It’s a struggle which first afflicted the proud, historically-strong club last season as players started to miss games late in the year.
But the Dragons we see now are a far cry to what we saw in 2021 when they won the minor premiership and had plenty of depth, evident in their strong reserves grade showing.
Robbie Butcher and David Tabaui are two of the Dragons best, but have made infrequent appearances in 2023.
A further setback for the side is the injury of captain Zak Mott, who came off early in the Sharks match.
In positive signs Trey Crowley has been all-effort for the club win or lose, while Levi Wauchope was unlucky not to score on what was a very dangerous attack on Sharks’ line.
Also worth noting Nightcliff junior Jett Doyle was selected in the Combined Affliated States under-18s schoolboys side.
As with any competition the NRL NT works in cycles, it wasn’t so long ago that Sharks were fighting for the wooden spoon while Litchfield struggled in 2021.
Souths have been down in the doldrums for a long while and this season are showing signs of pulling out, now it’s Nightcliff’s task to do the same.
The comp is at its strongest when all six sides are performing and for Nightcliff it’s just a matter of bringing players in.
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