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SuperCoach NRL: King Gutho raises the bat, 20 Winners and Losers from Friday Night Footy

King Gutho turned back the clock with a vintage performance for the Eels, while Sam Walker showed why he is a genuine HFB1 option. See the 20 SC Winners and Losers from Friday Night Footy.

Sean TeumaSean Teuma
@seanteuma
12 min read
August 2, 2024 - 10:45PM
Sam Walker had a night to remember in Perth. Photo: James Worsfold/Getty Images
Sam Walker had a night to remember in Perth. Photo: James Worsfold/Getty Images

An extraordinary Friday Night Footy saw action spread from as far east as Auckland all the way west to Perth.

It was western Sydney who came to the fore first with the Eels scoring a massive upset over the Warriors.

Then the Dolphins and Roosters turned it on with an 11-try epic in Perth as the ‘visitors’ inched closer to a top-four finish.

But what did it all mean from a SuperCoach perspective?

Find out in our SC Winners and Losers from Friday Night Footy.

SUPERCOACH WINNERS

1. Sam Walker (102) – All the talk has been about Nathan Cleary, but Sam Walker is proving how valuable he can be for SuperCoaches on the run to the finals. Notches another huge score.

2. Clint Gutherson (111) – It hasn’t been a great year for the Eels, but that was a vintage performance from the King as he topped the count in a massive upset victory.

3. Max Plath (90) – Did the damage in the first half with a score of close to 70. Such a consistent player and he really deserved his breakout game.

4. Sitili Tupouniua (74) – Scored in excess of 70 points in just 52 minutes of game-time, courtesy of a burst in the second half where he was able to score a quick double.

5. Connor Watson (73) – Not sure if the plan was for him to get through that many minutes, but with injuries all around he stepped up to the mark to notch a tidy score for the night.

6. Marata Niukore (83) – Dropped to his lowest price of the season and responds in turn with his highest score of 2024. SuperCoach can be a funny game sometimes.

7. Dylan Brown (79) – Another very strong score from the Eels five-eighth who has well and truly taken over the running of the team. Still a good buy option.

8. Jake Averillo (73) – A bad read defensively in the second half but other than that he was dangerous as always in the centres, finishing with two try assists.

9. Blaize Talagi (76) – What a week it was for the young man. Announced his departure from the Eels and landed in New Zealand with a point to prove, including scoring a try.

10. Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad (88) – Looked his most dangerous when the game was done and dusted, but his owners won’t mind as he recorded a nice outing.

Friday Night Footy - top SuperCoach scores
Friday Night Footy - top SuperCoach scores

SUPERCOACH LOSERS

1. Josh Kerr (13) – Came up with a shocking mistake after points in the second half. Errors proved costly for the bench forward and he saw little over 20 minutes as a result.

2. Lindsay Collins (9) – Had a sickening head clash with teammate Victor Radley early in the contest and didn’t return. Would have to be in doubt for next week.

3. Wiremu Greig (18) – Punched out his 17-minute stint at the start of the game and then called it a night. Not a bad job if you can get it!

4. Dom Young (24) – Went off with injury in the second half in a massive blow for a huge number of SuperCoaches. The full extent is yet to be known.

5. Dylan Walker (18) – He went off early in the game in what proved to be a big blow for the Warriors. Will be a tough buy now in the coming weeks.

6. Sean Russell (20) – Not exactly known as a great workrate player and when a winger doesn’t score, the risk is a score of just 20.

7. Brandon Smith (28) – Played 48 minutes and then didn’t return for the rest of the game and a pretty lacklustre SC season continues for The Cheese.

8. Joey Manu (29) – Made a long awaited return from injury but for those hanging out for his comeback, a modest total of 29 isn’t exactly cause for celebration.

9. Jake Tago (33) – Don’t want to be too harsh on the young man, but 33 points with a try isn’t the best outing for a winger. Being sent to the sin bin once again didn’t help his cause.

10. Isaiya Katoa (18) – Has never been the highest scoring halfback in the game, but 18 is well below par for the young gun who has been very good so far in 2024.

RELIVE ALL THE FRIDAY NIGHT ACTION IN OUR LIVE BLOG

FULL-TIME - Roosters 40-34

What a game that was.

The Dolphins had one last shot to try and force golden point but the Roosters were able to hold solid and claim a famous win in Perth.

Here are the top SuperCoach scores from full-time:

Dolphins vs Roosters - top SuperCoach full-time scores
Dolphins vs Roosters - top SuperCoach full-time scores

75th minute - Roosters 40-34

Jack Bostock scores from the Dolphins getting a chance at the Roosters line and it gets them back to within eight.

The game is still within reach after they kick a penalty goal after the Roosters were deemed offside.

70th minute - Roosters 40-26

Jamayne Isaako is ruled to have hit Sam Walker late after a kick and that gives the Roosters a golden opportunity to put the game to bed.

They take the penalty shot with the flawless boot of Walker making it eight goals from as many attempts, taking his personal tally to 24 points.

Joey Manu is sent to the sin bin after a late shot on the Hammer that was deemed to be late and high.

A sin bin seems quite over the top.

60th minute - Roosters 38-26

Another Dolphins mistake deep in their own half has proven costly.

They were slow to get across in defence and Sitili Tupouniua is able to crash over from close range.

These errors are killing the Dolphins at the moment.

In a matter of minutes Tupouniua has a double.

Walker throws a long ball from a dropout, Daniel Tupou steps inside a bad miss from Jake Averillo and the bench forward has a double.

50th minute - 26-all

A shocking miss from Joseph Sua’ali’i and Daniel Tupou allows Jack Averillo a clear passage through.

He finds who else but Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow to surge to the line for an entertaining try.

That has the Perth fans up and about.

A ball plant the very next set from Josh Kerr gives the Roosters a shot at their line and an offload from Angus Crichton to Daniel Tupou sees them hit back immediately.

HALFTIME - 20-all

An entertaining half of football sees both teams trade penalty goals to end the half and the two will go into the sheds locked at 20-all.

It’s a fair result given the spectacle they’ve put on for the fans in Perth.

Here are the top SuperCoach scores from halftime:

Dolphins vs Roosters - top SuperCoach halftime scores
Dolphins vs Roosters - top SuperCoach halftime scores

30th minute - 18-all

The fans of Perth are starved of football, but they are getting their fair share of points on their plate tonight.

Felise Kaufusi is put one-on-one with Luke Keary on the tryline and proves far too strong, powering his way over from short range to cut the margin to six.

The Roosters have looked very good in attack, but their defence on their line is leaving a lot to be desired.

Dom Young can’t contain a bomb, the Dolphins get another set and they immediately score to go back-to-back.

Quick hands from Jake ‘Show Me The Way To’ Averillo to Jamayne Isaako has the Dolphins all tied up.

Lindsay Collins will not return to the game, while Victor Radley is back on.

20th minute - Roosters 18-6

The Dolphins get their first real chance to attack and they strike with Max Plath getting low out of dummy half to catch some sloppy defence napping.

The Dolphins desperately needed that one as the game threatened to get away from them very early on.

Lindsay Collins and Victor Radley collide heads in a shocking tackle gone wrong. Collins has a massive gash over his right eye and Radley has some claret from his noggin as well.

Both are off for a HIA but will need to be stitched up if they are to return.

Sam Walker is on his way for a bumper SuperCoach score.

He picks up his second try of the night after another chip and chase comes off.

10th minute - Roosters 12-0

It’s been all the Roosters to start this one.

Joseph Sua’ali’i got them off the mark early and a chip and chase from Sam Walker extends the margin all inside 10 minutes.

They also went within inches of another, only for James Tedesco to be correctly denied by the Bunker.

The Dolphins are in big trouble here.

8PM: Kick-off is upon as at HBF Park in Perth for a very rare game in the west.

Can the Dolphins bounce back from a couple of disappointing defeats, or will the Roosters be able to ice a spot in the top four.

WARRIORS VS EELS

FULL-TIME - Eels 30-20

The Warriors wait until they’re down by 26 to start playing some footy and are able to score a couple of tries that matter little.

Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad and Marata Niukore got across the line, but it was well and truly the Eels night and they should easily avoid the wooden spoon now.

Dallin Watene-Zelezniak scored a try off a nice kick from Shaun Johnson right on the bell. That try will be very important for some.

Here are the top SuperCoach scores from full-time:

Warriors vs Eels - top SuperCoach full-time scores
Warriors vs Eels - top SuperCoach full-time scores

70th minute - Eels 30-4

And just like that, the Warriors can start booking their tickets to Bali.

Clint Gutherson gets on the end of a clean break through the line to stretch the margin to a number that cannot be reached.

The amount of straightforward line breaks the Eels have made tonight has been astounding.

New Zealand had everything to play for, in front of a sold out home crowd, and delivered a duck egg.

60th minute - Eels 24-4

A trip has been penalised to give the Eels great territory, and they extend their lead to 20 points.

Balize Talagi hits a short ball and easily gets through a poor attempt from Moala Graham-Taufa to score.

The Warriors are going out without a whimper in 2024.

7.20PM: Dolphins coach Wayne Bennett has swung the axe an hour before kick-off in their clash against the Roosters, with Kodi Nikorima and Tevita Pangai Jr dropping out of the starting side.

Sean O’Sullivan comes into the starting side at five-eighth in place of Nikorima, while Pangai Jr has been relegated to 18th man, with Oryn Keely starting at prop and Tesi Niu the new face on the bench.

The Dolphins have won just one of their past five games.

The Roosters are 1-17 for the night.

50th minute - Eels 18-4

Remarkable scenes in New Zealand.

An incident involving an Eels tackle on Dallin Watene-Zelezniak has been placed on report and it appears he was complaining about a squirrel grip.

He got up clutching his groin following a tackle. The Bunker failed to see anything, leaving referee Todd Smith with no choice but to place the incident on report with no penalty on field.

HALFTIME - Eels 18-4

Dylan Walker has failed his HIA and will not return tonight.

A play that sums up New Zealand’s night so far - Chanel Harris-Tavita gets on the end of a grubber and instead of taking the tackle in the field of play, he remains upright and is taken back into his own in-goal.

The Eels score with the very next play as Clint Gutherson hits a surging Deajarn Asi to get through some soft defence.

Shaun Johnson misses a regulation penalty goal on halftime to cap off one of the worst halves of football the team has produced this year.

Here are the top SuperCoach scores from halftime:

Warriors vs Eels - top SuperCoach halftime scores
Warriors vs Eels - top SuperCoach halftime scores

30th minute - Eels 12-4

The Warriors blow their challenge and the Eels double their lead in the very next set.

This is borderline embarrassing from the Warriors.

Joey Lussick scoots from dummy half, gets past Addin Fonua-Blake and shrugs Ali Leiataua off to score far too easily.

Credit to Parramatta, they’ve held the Warriors out early and are looking like the only team that wants to be out there at the moment.

Oh boy did the Warriors need that.

They finally show some creativity in attack and a spread to Roger Tuivasa-Sheck results in a try out wide.

20th minute - Eels 6-0

A mistake from the Warriors gifts the Eels their first attacking set of the night and they fall short.

They looked to have the home side under the pump though.

Brendan Hands is taken from the field for a HIA.

So far the only play the Warriors have in their playbook is a crash play for Kurt Capewell near the line - their attack is incredibly pedestrian considering what is at stake.

Parramatta gets a penalty, a set restart and all of a sudden they have first points.

A spread close to the line sees Jake Tago get past a pretty poor attempted tackle from Dallin Watene-Zelezniak in the corner.

10th minute - 0-all

This feels like a copy and paste from a majority of the Warriors’ home games this year.

But they have started well and appear to be winning the arm wrestle in terms of territory and pinning the Eels in their own half.

They haven’t turned it into points though. The longer the Eels hang around, the more belief they will have they can spring an upset.

6PM: Friday Night Footy is underway in New Zealand.

Will it be the Warriors to keep their season alive or can the Eels avoid the wooden spoon with a win?

Dolphins vs Roosters - top recent SuperCoach scores
Dolphins vs Roosters - top recent SuperCoach scores

5.30PM: If you put the scenarios on the table, this should be a big night for the Warriors, right?

They have a finals spot to play for and virtually need to win every game to ensure they make it.

Parramatta on the other hand is coming off losing one of their brightest young stars from next season onwards, are sitting in second last and have to travel to New Zealand.

All signs point to a big Warriors win, but stranger things have happened and we’ve seen the Warriors bottle it in the past.

Still, from a SuperCoach perspective it shapes up as a tantalising prospect.

The Warriors should be putting a score on tonight, and the Eels could throw the ball around with nothing to lose.

We saw five players hit the century last night and there’s every chance we see more in the Friday opener.

Warriors vs Eels - top recent SuperCoach scores
Warriors vs Eels - top recent SuperCoach scores

5PM: The Warriors welcome back two big name players for a must-win clash with Parramatta to kick off Friday Night Footy.

Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad (FLB $540,400) jumps straight back into fullback with Edward Kosi dropping out of the side.

Shaun Johnson (HFB $493,800) makes his return at halfback and Te Maire Martin is player to lose his spot.

It’s an interesting call given Johnson has won just three of his 12 games played in 2024 and hasn’t come close to recapturing the form that saw him narrowly miss out on last year’s Dally M.

The Warriors have made one late team change an hour before kick-off, with hooker Wayde Egan moving back to the bench, with Freddy Lussick starting the game at dummy-half.

Parramatta is unchanged with their 17, with boom rookie and man of the week Blaize Talagi (CTW/FLB $550,000) holding his spot in the centres despite telling the Eels he won’t be there next year.

EARLIER: The first match of the night sees the Warriors at home and desperate to win in a bid to keep their faint hopes of playing finals footy alive while their opponent, Parramatta, are just trying to avoid the wooden spoon.

The second game comes to us form Perth as the high-flying Roosters look to lock down a top-four spot and the Dolphins a top-eight finish.

As always there is plenty of SuperCoach interest in both games, more so the second match with the red hot Roosters attack a target for many.

PLAYERS TO WATCH:

In the early game the big interest lies with two big boppers from the Warriors. Addin Fonua-Blake has scored a try in each of the last two games and when the big man bags a pie he scores well. His bookend buddy Mitch Barnett has been scoring well too and brings a 5RA (five round average) of 95.2PPG into the game. The Eels have struggled all year but have actually defended against middle forwards well so I would not stick the VC armband on either Wahs forward.

Roger Tuivasa-Sheck has been showing off his versatility and ability of late with a 3RA of 78.7PPG. He scored 72 points playing at centre against the Bulldogs, 85 at wing against the Raiders and then 79 playing fullback against the Tigers. Back on the wing for this match, RTS would be right in my ‘Any Time Scorers’ sites if I were a gambling man (as opposed to just a rambling man – editor), but I wouldn’t go the VC here either as Roger doesn’t go really big and with Nathan Cleary waiting in the wings you’ll want a 130+ from your VC before looping.

Dylan Brown is the only Eel of interest for mine and that interest is scant. If he were in my side I would probably squeeze him into my scoring 17 but I would not be using him as VC.

In the second game of the night we have some real scoring power.

James Tedesco has reached triple figures four times in his past seven matches including very ‘loopable’ scores of 151 (Raiders) and 149 (Dragons) and probably loopable 126 against Manly last week. Easily the most popular VC of the round.

Sam Walker is the other Rooster with a high ceiling that some might target as a VC option tonight. The diminutive half has hit triple figures twice in the past five games and has a season high of 172. I prefer Tedesco, but if you wanted to buck the trend and go for someone other than Teddy than Walker could be your guy.

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Originally published as SuperCoach NRL: King Gutho raises the bat, 20 Winners and Losers from Friday Night Footy

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Original URL: https://www.ntnews.com.au/sport/nrl/supercoach-news/nrl-live-scores-and-supercoach-analysis-warriors-vs-eels-dolphins-vs-roosters/news-story/cf8ea9ec04e73a31cc718f0ed1b0e6fd