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SuperCoach scores, news and analysis from Bulldogs vs Dolphins, Cowboys vs Raiders & Tigers vs Rabbitohs

The Bulldogs are finals bound, and the Tigers’ hopes of avoiding the wooden spoon are still alive. But it was Valentine Holmes who stole the show as the Cowboys put on a clinic. See all the Winners and Losers from Super Saturday.

Wilson Smith and Mitch Bourke
21 min read
August 18, 2024 - 10:13AM
News Sport Network
BUNDABERG, AUSTRALIA – JULY 30: Jacob Preston of the Bulldogs is tackled by Kodi Nikorima of the Dolphins during the round 22 NRL match between Canterbury Bulldogs and Dolphins at Salter Oval on July 30, 2023 in Bundaberg, Australia. (Photo by Ian Hitchcock/Getty Images)
BUNDABERG, AUSTRALIA – JULY 30: Jacob Preston of the Bulldogs is tackled by Kodi Nikorima of the Dolphins during the round 22 NRL match between Canterbury Bulldogs and Dolphins at Salter Oval on July 30, 2023 in Bundaberg, Australia. (Photo by Ian Hitchcock/Getty Images)

The Bulldogs are set for their first finals appearance in eight years after they downed the Dolphins. The Cowboys all but secured their spot in the top eight after tearing the Raiders apart to all but end their finals hopes.

And the Wests Tigers’ hopes of avoiding a third straight wooden spoon received a massive boost, after they held on to deny the Rabbitohs a comeback win in Campbelltown.

And with some big wins there came some big SuperCoach scores, with four players cracking 100 points, while a handful of others could get there after countbacks.

Here are the SuperCoach Winners and Losers on Super Saturday:

SUPERCOACH WINNERS

1. Jacob Kiraz (129): He’s been in fine form and it was no different in Bundaberg. Kiraz lit up the opening half-hour with two tries and didn’t look back. A special effort considering he was winded and throwing up in the corner after landing painfully on the footy in the process of scoring his first try.

2. Connor Tracey (84): The point of difference CTW/FLB got himself on the end of a runaway try to cap off a great display and was rewarded with 84 points.

3. Matt Burton (76): Added another solid showing to season as he picked up back-to-back try assists in the midst of a potent patch from Canterbury’s left edge in the second half. Also nailed five out of seven conversion attempts.

4. Valentine Holmes (133): Just days after announcing he was leaving the Cowboys, Holmes produced one of his best performances of the year on the back of three tries, seven goals, a linebreak, and 39 points in base. Remarkably this was only his fourth best score of the season so far.

5. Jake Clifford (117): Playing just his fourth game of the season, Clifford impressed after Chad Townsend was axed from the side, and you think he may have done enough to hold onto the No.7 jersey for now. Scored a try himself and helped set up two others.

6. Keaon Koloamatangi (99): Bounced back after a down week in Round 23, scoring a late try to end on 99 points before score updates. Went down late with an injury but managed to play on, so hopefully all is well.

7. Scott Drinkwater (97): Another great performance for the Cowboys fullback, coming close to a century before countbacks without scoring a try. He did however help set up three, as well as a linebreak and three linebreak assists.

8. Cameron Murray (97):Speaking of great scores without tries, the Rabbitohs skipper was inspirational, with a whopping 81 points in base, including 55 tackles.

9. Jye Gray (81): Filling in for the injured Latrell Mitchell, the Rabbitohs backup fullback is proving hard to handle for opposition players, as proven by his TWELVE tacklebreaks. Also scored a try and helped set up another.

10. Heath Mason (61) - Not the biggest score of the day, but the Tigers rookie showed some signs of brilliance in his fourth career appearance, and could be one to watch in the future.

11. Damien Cook (90) - Was plodding along for most of the game making a heap of tackles, but came to life late in the game, scoring a late try to give Souths a whiff, but ultimately they fell short.

SUPERCOACH LOSERS

1. Jack Bostock (27) - The CTW had a quiet day and was largely unsighted with just the 27 points to show. Is struggling to emulate his round scintillating run between rounds 19 and 20 where scored 111 and 95.

2. Jaeman Salmon (25) - Just the 25 points for Salmon, but it was far from a horrible return given he had just 26 minutes of game time.

3. Oryn Keeley (7) - Should come as no surprise Keeley was the game’s lowest scorer given he spent only 11 minutes on the field.

4. Jacob Host (3) - Played just seven minutes and made very little impact. Had an opportunity to score a try with one of his first touches of the game but knocked on. A night to forget for the Souths star.

5. Cody Walker (27) - Struggled to make his mark on the game and was forced off the field early with a headknock that could rule him out for Round 25.

6. Samuela Fainu (29) - A massive fall from the 112 points that he scored in Round 22, Fainu is now clearly dependant on tries for big scores as he just doesn’t have the base stats of the games’ elite forwards.

7. Reuben Cotter (23) - One of the most owned forwards in SuperCoach, Cotter produced one of his worst performances of the season, and with a BE of 106 before this game, looks set for a massive price drop. It didn’t help that he got an early mark because of the Cowboys’ massive lead. Also has the bye next week, so could be a must sell.

8. Kaeo Weekes (26) - Owned by just over 10% of SuperCoaches, Weekes looks set for a slight price drop, and looms as a must sell.

9. Ethan Strange (29) - Still owned by almost 24% of SuperCoaches, his owners will be disappointed with his score. His shift to centre has been perplexing and is not working for SuperCoach purposes. Set to lose a bit of cash and looms as a sell contender.

10. Joseph Tapine (47) - While not the worst score, it was significant down on his 3RA of 85 and his owners would be disappointed.

11. Richard Kennar (5) - What little he did on the field was undone after he was sin-binned for a lazy high shot on Tigers rookie Luke Laulilii. He gave away four penalties in total and had two missed tackles.

12. Apisai Koroisau (32) - One of the most owned hookers in SuperCoach, Api got a rest in the second half and really needs to play the whole 80 for a big score.

FULL-TIME: TIGERS 18-16 RABBITOHS

The Wests Tigers hopes of avoiding a third straight wooden spoon have received a massive boost, producing one of their best defensive efforts of the season to secure their fifth win of the season, and snapping a seven-game losing streak.

The Rabbitohs came agonisingly close to snatching victory from the jaws of defeat, with Davvy Moale looked to score late, before the pass was called forward. Referees missed another forward pass from South Sydney earlier in the set, so perhaps a sense of justice that the second was also denied.

The Tigers’ win now potentially sets up a mouth-watering Round 27 clash against Parramatta that could decide the wooden spoon. The Tigers have Manly next week and will get a guaranteed two points in Round 26 with the bye, while Parramatta have the Broncos next week and the Dragons in Round 26.

Lachlan Galvin controlled the game early and finished the game on 76 SuperCoach points, but the second half was all about South Sydney, with Keaon Koloamatangi topping the SuperCoach scoring after a late try, while Cameron Murray remarkably finished up on 97 points with no attacking stats, courtesy of a whopping 55 tackles, 26 points from hit-ups and one linebreak.

78TH MINUTE — NOW WE’RE COOKING

Oh boy we have a grandstand finish on our hands here, with Damien Cook scoring in the dying minutes to put the Rabbitohs within arms reach of victory, as they trail by two points with less than two minutes to go.

77TH MINUTE - WALKER DOWN

The Rabbioths have gone close yet again, but suffered a massive blow in the dying minutes, with star half Cody Walker left concussed after copping an accidental knee to the head. In some good news he was able to walk from the ground unassisted.

73RD - TIGERS HOLDING ON

It’s been a while since we had any points, with the Tigers on track for their fifth win of the season if their defence can keep holding on. Souths have had a mountain of possession in the last 20 minutes and had a few chances go begging, but so far the Tigers have been able to hold them out, and have an 8 point lead with just over 6 minutes remaining.

58TH MINUTE - KEAON CRASHES OVER

The Rabbitohs have crashed over for their second try of the night, with Keaon Koloamatangi diving over on the right edge. It was a length of the try effort for Souths, with Cody Walker making a clean break up field, before Souths shifted it left and out to Koloamatangi. For the Tigers, Fonua Pole is off with a suspected knee injury that kept him down for sometime and looks to be somewhat serious.

48TH MINUTE - SOUTHS BOMB A TRY

We’re back underway and the Rabbitohs have gone agonisingly close to their second try of the night, with Tigers winger Luke Laulilii coming up with a brilliant try saver to deny Jacob Gagai. It was sent up as a try, but the bunker overruled after replays showed the ball never hit the ground before Gagai lost it. Two minutes later, the Tigers extended their lead by another two points, after a late shot on Aidan Sezer from Cameron Murray.

HALF-TIME - TIGERS 16-4 RABBITOHS

The Wests Tigers are potentially 40-minutes away from a crucial win, that could go a long way to helping avoid a third straight wooden spoon. After a mountain of early possession, the Tigers scored first, before both sides scored again in a seesawing contest. The Tigers scored a third try after Richie Kennar was sent to the sin bin. Lachlan Galvin has been the most impressive so far, setting up two of the Tigers tries.

TOP PERFORMERS SO FAR

1. Lachlan Galvin - 58 points

2. Cameron Murray - 51 points

3. Taane Milne - 42 points

4. Adam Doueihi - 41 points

5. Isaiah Papali’i - 40 points

31ST MINUTE - TIGERS POUNCE AGAIN AS KENNAR BINNED

Richard Kennar has been sent to the sin bin, after throwing an arm out and collecting Tigers winger Luke Laulilii high. And they wasted no time capitalising on their one man advantage, with Lachie Galvin putting Adam Doueihi over in the corner. With Laulilii off for the HIA, Doueihi shifted to the wing.

Wests will still have a one-man advantage for the rest of the half.

Galvin is on top of the pointscoring so far, with 57 courtesy of two try assists and two linebreak assists. Cameron Murray isn’t far behind on 45 after making a tone of early tackles.

19TH MINUTE - TIGERS IN AGAIN

Oh boy we have a game on our hands here! The Tigers are in again, with Luke Laulilii scoring his second career try and his sides’ second try of the night. It was a brilliant cut out pass from SuperCoach star Lachie Galvin, with Laulilii diving over in the corner to get it down with just centimetres to spare.

15TH MINUTE - SOUTHS HIT BACK

Jye Gray has looked dangerous early, hitting back to score the Rabbitohs first try of the night after a nice offload from Taane Milne. The fullback spot is all his with Latrell Mitchell set to miss the rest of the season, and he has looked impressive so far this season in the No.1 jersey.

Meanwhile, Aidan Sezer has been put on report for a crusher tackle on Gray, with the incident initially cleared by on-field referees.

10TH MINUTE - TIGERS POUNCE FIRST

Scrap that! Just three minutes after my last post, the Tigers have opened the scoring tonight, with winger Charlie Staines collecting a perfectly timed kick from Aidan Sezer, to score in the corner. Wests are off to a strong start so far, putting the Rabbitohs under all sorts of pressure early, and forcing them to make a heap of early tackles.

7TH MINUTE - TIGERS TRY GOES BEGGING

Despite a mountain of early possession, the Tigers have been unable to crack the Rabbitohs defence early, with Stefano Utoikamanu going agonisingly close.

Jacob Gagai was put on report for a high shot on rookie fullback Heath Mason, which was missed by the on-field referees.

Mason has had some good early touches and could be one to watch.

KICK-OFF

And we’re underway in our final game of Super Saturday, with the Tigers hosting South Sydney, and while neither side are in finals contention, there is a tonne of SuperCoach implications in this clash. Not to mention a Tigers win could help them potentially avoid a third straight wooden spoon.

TIGERS VS RABBITOHS LATE MAIL

The final teams are in for the Tigers and Souths and there are no further late changes an hour before kick-off. The only change to the initial squad is Heath Mason coming in at fullback for Jahream Bula, whose season is over after having surgery on a shoulder injury.

Tigers

19. Heath Mason 2. Luke Laulilii 3. Solomona Faataape 4. Adam Doueihi 5. Charlie Staines 6. Lachlan Galvin 7. Aidan Sezer 8. Stefano Utoikamanu 9. Apisai Koroisau 10. David Klemmer 11. Alex Seyfarth 12. Samuela Fainu 13. Isaiah Papali’i

Interchange: 14. Tallyn Da Silva 15. Sione Fainu 16. Fonua Pole 17. Alex Twal

Reserves: 20. Reuben Porter

Rabbitohs

1. Jye Gray 2. Fletcher Myers 3. Taane Milne 4. Richard Kennar 5. Jacob Gagai 6. Jack Wighton 7. Cody Walker 8. Davvy Moale 9. Damien Cook 10. Sean Keppie 11. Keaon Koloamatangi 12. Tallis Duncan 13. Cameron Murray

Interchange: 14. Peter Mamouzelos 15. Jacob Host 16. Thomas Burgess 17. Shaquai Mitchell

Reserves: 18. Dean Hawkins

FULL-TIME: COWBOYS 42-4 RAIDERS

The Cowboys have bounced back from their surprise loss to the Broncos in the best possible way, thrashing the Raiders at home to solidify their spot in the top eight, and all but ending Canberra’s season.

Todd Payten’s decision to axe Chad Townsend and hand the No.7 jersey to Jake Clifford paid off immediately, as he reignited the Cowboys attack and was solid defensively on their right edge, which had been leaking a lot of points in recent weeks. Clifford finished the match on 117 SuperCoach points.

Just days after announcing this would be his last season at the club, Valentine Holmes produced one of his best games of the season, ending on a whopping 133 SuperCoach points thanks to a hat-trick.

For the Raiders, there was very little to like from this performance, with just one try scored in the game, with Hudson Young their top SuperCoach scorer, ending on 74-points.

See the top 10 scorers from the match below.

Top point scorers from the Cowboys and Raiders.
Top point scorers from the Cowboys and Raiders.

66TH MINUTE: EARLY MARK FOR DRINKY

SuperCoaches who own Scott Drinkwater will be spewing, with the Cowboys halfback pulled from the field early with his side well on top of the Raiders. Up by 38 points at the time, Todd Payten clearly unwilling to risk his star fullback any longer, with the finals on the horizonand a bye next week. In saying that he does end the game on 97 SuperCoach points, so his owners wont be too beat up about it.

59TH MINUTE: THINGS GETTING NASTY AFTER FELDT DOUBLE

Uh oh Canberra, things are starting to get very ugly here … the Cowboys are in again, with Kyle Feldt crossing over for his second try of the night in a near carbon copy of his first try. The Cowboys are now on 42 points and there is just under 20 minutes to go now … can the Cowboys put 50 on them here?

48TH MINUTE: HOLMES HAT-TRICK

Oh my god, what a try! Valentine Holmes is in for his third try of the night, flying through the air and outleaping Xavier Savage to collect the kick from Tom Dearden. Funnily enough it actually looked like a miskick from Dearden, making it even more spectacular that Holmes came down with it. His latest try takes Holmes to a whopping 115 SuperCoach points so far.

44TH MINUTE: HOLMES STRIKES

The second half is underway and the Cowboys wasted no time in continuing their dominance, with Valentine Holmes crossing for his second try of the night, after a brilliant pick-up and offload from Tom Dearden.

HALF-TIME: COWBOYS 24-4 RAIDERS

After a dominant start to the half, the Cowboys have ended on a high note, scoring two late tries after the Raiders began to wrestle back control.

It’s been the Jake Clifford show so far in this game, who leads the SuperCoach scoring so far thanks to a try, try assist and two linebreak assists.

TOP PERFORMERS SO FAR

1. Jake Clifford – 88 points

2. Valentine Holmes – 67 points

3. Scott Drinkwater – 64 points

4. Reece Robson – 55 points

5. Tom Dearden – 49 points

38TH MINUTE: COWBOYS STRIKE BEFORE HT

And with just over 90 seconds left in this half the Cowboys have scored their fourth try of the game, with Tom Dearden running past Jamal Fogarty to dive over, after a great run from Jake Clifford, before Scott Drinkwater put his five-eighth into a gap. That's the second try now that Fogarty has been unable to stop one-on-one.

SCORING ISSUE UPDATE: The scoring error from before has been fixed, with Valentine Holmes now given the points for his try, the extra try taken away from Kyle Feldt, and the extra Try contribution has been taken off Reece Robson.

35TH MINUTE: COWBOYS IN AGAIN

Just when things looked to have swung toward the Raiders, the Cowboys are in again, with Kyle Feldt scoring in the corner, courtesy of a crisp pass from new halfback Jake Clifford, who has had a very impressive opening half so far. If he keeps this up he may just hold onto that No.7 jersey.

30TH MINUTE: RAIDERS HIT BACK

The Raiders have struck back, with the Raiders scoring through Seb Kris scoring in the corner after somehow miraculously staying in the field. His toes stayed in by a matter of millimetres after an attempted tackle from Kyle Feldt.

This is starting to remind me a little of last week when the Cowboys got off to an early lead before being overtaken by the Broncos.

Earlier, Josh Papali'i was put on report for dropping the knee onto the head of Valentine Holmes.

18TH MINUTE: COWBOYS IN AGAIN

The Cowboys have crossed for their second try of the night, this time with Valentine Holmes crashing over the top of Jamal Fogarty to score, after a crisp cut-out pass from Scott Drinkwater.

Reuben Cotter is on report for a high shot on Morgan Smithies.

Reece Robson made another break earlier to take his score to 40 points, but interestingly he has been awarded both a try assist and a try contribution for the Jake Clifford try … so one of them should be deducted in countbacks.

Think we may have some technical difficulties happening with SuperCoach scoring since Kyle Feldt was awarded the Valentine Holmes try … watch this space.

5TH MINUTE: COWBOYS STRIKE FIRST

Filling in at halfback in the place of Chad Townsend, Jake Clifford has cut Canberra open early, making a break before passing off to hooked Reece Robson before getting the ball back to cross over untouched.

KICK-OFF

And we’re underway in Townsville, with the Cowboys kicking off to the Raiders. Can the Cowboys claim victory and solidify their spot in the top eight, or can Canberra pull off an upset?

COWBOYS VS RAIDERS LATE MAIL

Good afternoon all, Wilson Smith here taking over from Mitch Burke for our live blog coverage for the rest of Super Saturday.

The final teams are in for the Cowboys and Raiders, with Ricky Stuart making just one change in the hour before kick-off, with Josh Papali'i moving back to the bench and Ata Mariota moving to the starting front row.

Cowboys 

1. Scott Drinkwater 2. Kyle Feldt 3. Valentine Holmes 4. Viliami Vailea 5. Murray Taulagi 6. Tom Dearden 7. Jake Clifford 8. Jordan McLean 9. Reece Robson 10. Sam McIntyre 11. Heilum Luki 12. Kulikefu Finefeuiaki 13. Reuben Cotter

Interchange: 14. Harrison Edwards 15. Thomas Mikaele 16. Jaxon Purdue 17. Griffin Neame

Reserves: 18. Tomas Chester

Raiders

1. Kaeo Weekes 2. Sebastian Kris 3. Matthew Timoko 4. Ethan Strange 5. Xavier Savage 6. Adam Cook 7. Jamal Fogarty 10. Joseph Tapine 9. Tom Starling 16. Ata Mariota 11. Hudson Young 12. Elliott Whitehead 13. Morgan Smithies

Interchange: 8. Josh Papali’i 14. Danny Levi 15. Emre Guler 17. Simi Sasagi

Reserves: 18. Albert Hopoate

FULL-TIME: BULLDOGS 30-10 DOLPHINS

There’s a big injury watch on Josh Curran who looked to be in significant pain on the bench in the final minutes of the game. He could be seen clutching at his right shoulder.

It came after a clinical Dogs outfit out grinded the Dolphins in the second half before their left edge lit up Bundaberg with two tries in as many minutes to run away 301-0 victors.

It was a pivotal win that rubber-stamped Canterbury’s premiership credentials as top four contenders.

Turning to SuperCoach, Jacob Kiraz was dominant early to complete his double inside 30 minutes and finished with a whopping 129 SuperCoach points.

Connor Tracey’s late try lifted him to 84 points, while Matt Burton was dominant with 76.

Josh Curran – who picked up that apparent shoulder injury – had 43 points and Samuel Hughes had 29.

Jamayne Isaako – the most popular SuperCoach option in the game – managed 55 points off the back of his try.

See the top 10 scorers from the match below.

Full-time SuperCoach leaders in Bulldogs vs Dolphins NRL clash.
Full-time SuperCoach leaders in Bulldogs vs Dolphins NRL clash.

69TH MINUTE: DOGS PUT IT TO BED

That seals it. This is a Canterbury team worthy of finishing in the top four. What a mature display.

The Dogs sat in the grind and wore the Dolphins down before delivering a brutal double blow in a matter of minutes to seal the result. Game over, just like that.

Both tries came on Canterbury’s electric left edge. The latest linebreaker was Viliame Kikau who was too strong for a fatigued Dolphins defence and found Matt Burton on his outside who put Connor Tracey over as blue and white jerseys surged through the backfield.

It was Burton’s second try assist in as many minutes and Canterbury’s lead is out to 20 points.

67TH MINUTE: DOGS PREVAIL

Canterbury has finally cashed in on its stretch of dominance thanks to a brilliant linebreak from Matt Burton. Burton silkily bust his way through the Dolphins line and utilised a streaming Bronson Xerri on his left to time the pass perfectly before putting him over.

It’s a very warm winter day in Bundaberg and Burton converted his own work to extend the Bulldogs lead to 14 points.

The Dolphins look to be fatiguing and with 12 and a half minutes to play it would take some comeback to turn this game around.

Burton is now the second-highest SuperCoach scorer on the field with 57 points, while Kiraz has continued to soar and surpassed three figures with 109 points.

65TH MINUTE: DOLPHINS GALLANT DEFENCE

After an action-packed first half this match has settled into a deadlock, with the second half tryless through its opening 25 minutes.

The Dolphins have had their bags against the wall in the past few sets but are defending gallantly, a brilliant swat from Herbie Farnworth with several Bulldogs circling saved what loomed as a try-scoring opportunity for Canterbury.

50TH MINUTE: A STEP AWAY

Josh Addo-Carr was one left boot away for adding a second try to his tally with a brilliant juggling effort he brought under control as he treated the touchline tightrope – unfortunately his penultimate step found the stripe to his left to rule the try out.

The Bulldogs were however awarded a penalty in the lead-up and opted for their second penalty goal of the game to extend their lead to 18-0 to Matt Burton.

The conversion – Burton’s third of the day – took his SuperCoach score to 28 points.

HALF-TIME: BULLDOGS 16-10 DOLPHINS

What a half of footy the Bundaberg crowd was just treated to! Tries aplenty, big hits, intercepts, and an epic chasedown tackle that will be etched into folklore.

The 16-10 scoreline is a fair reflection of the Dogs first-half dominance, but the Dolphins have been holding their own.

Tuning to SuperCoach, popular CTW Jacob kiraz was the talk of the half with his double, shooting to 77 points as a result. Fortunately we able to overcome the nasty winding after he landed squarely on top of the ball in the process of scoring his first try.

Canterbury half Matt Burton has only slotted one of three conversions but also slotted a penalty goal to sit on 21 points.

Dolphin Jamayne Isaako scored his side first try and nailed one of two conversions for 42 first-half points.

Dogs hooker Reed Mahoney is only on 12 points and had a few minutes to forget in the first-half. It kicked off when he was ragdolled after attempting to involve himself in a penalty call, and then received no sympathy from referee Adam Gee who gave him an old-fashioned telling off for getting involved. After the subsequent scrum, Mahoney was pinged for a forward pass and the Dolphins weren’t afraid to let him know.

See the top SuperCoach scorers at halftime below.

Bulldogs vs Dolphins halftime SuperCoach leaders.
Bulldogs vs Dolphins halftime SuperCoach leaders.

39TH MINUTE: INTERCEPTS GALORE

What a match this is turning out to be!

Dolphins centre Jake Averillo read the play beautifully against his former side to intercept and pounce for a 70-metre runaway try with no Dogs defenders in sight.

Jamayne Isaako converted to cut the Bulldogs lead to six points.

36TH MINUTE: SECOND TIME’S A CHARM

After he fell victim to a historic ‘Hammer’ chase down earlier, Josh Addo-Carr is finally on the board for Canterbury.

The Bulldogs have done their top four hopes no harm thus far with their first-half lead extended to 16-4. The third try came courtesy of a poor Kodi Nikorama pass which missed its target and trickled along the turf for Addo-Carr to pluck and run home untouched from the halfway line, with Tabuai-Fidow too far upfield to reel the ‘Foxx’ in this time around.

28TH MINUTE: KIRAZ DOUBLE

The scintillating form of Jacob Kiraz is continuing in Bundaberg with a first-half double under the wingers belt with plenty of time still to play in the opening 40 minutes.

Kiraz was again the benefactor of a great Bulldogs passing chain and finished superbly in the corner.

It takes him to 73 SuperCoach points already and his 30,000 SuperCoach owners will be cheering.

25TH MINUTE: DOLPHINS SCORE

Off the back of Tabuai-Fidow’s brilliant chase down effort on Addo-Carr, the Dolphins have crossed at the other end through Jamayne Isaako. The Dolphins now trail 6-4 after they were metres away from going down two tries to nil.

23RD MINUTE: OLYMPICS COME TO … BUNDY?

The athletics may have just wrapped up in Paris, but a packed Bundaberg crowd got a taste of a sprint finish as cutthroat as they come. Josh Addo-Carr, one of the fastest men in the game, was off down the left edge for Canterbury. With nothing between but daylight between him and the try line, a length-of-the-field spectacular beckoned for the ‘Foxx’. Enter Hamis Tabuai-Fidow, who turned on the afterburners like he rarely had before and threw Addo-Carr into touch with metres to spare.

14TH MINUTE: HOMETOWN HERO’S BRUISING START

Bundaberg product Felise Kaufusi has made a bruising start against the Bulldogs – and in particular Josh Curran.

He was placed on report for an earlier tackle on Josh Curran, and lined him up minutes later when the Bulldogs front-rower took the ball deep into the Dolphins line, conceding a penalty in the process for what was deemed – contentiously – to be a late shot.

The Fox League commentary team was in agreeance that Kaufusi had already committed to the tackle and had no other option but to follow through with the contact.

The Bulldogs opted for the two points and Matt Burton for his first points of the day to extend the Bulldogs lead to 6-0.

11TH MINUTE: KIRAZ STRIKES

The Dogs have broken the early deadlock with the first points of the day in Bundaberg.

A brilliant passing chain shifted the ball to Canterbury’s right edge quickly and created enough space for Kiraz to fly over the stripe in the corner.

Kiraz’s effort was near flawless, except when he landed directly on top of the ball as he leapt into the in-goal, appearing to wind himself significantly.

He was left on all fours in the corner of Salter Oval for several minutes and threw up.

3RD MINUTE: HEATING UP

It’s sunny and 27 degrees in Bundaberg which is going to make for some testing conditions come the latter stages of the game. There won’t be any drinks breaks but extra trainers will be allowed on the field due to the heat.

3:00pm: KICK-OFF

We’re underway at Salter Oval in Bundaberg for this Bulldogs vs Dolphins clash.

Can the Dolphins pick up a second win on the trot to continue to clinging on to eighth spot?

2:45pm: SEXTON’S RISE

Toby Sexton has been on fire in the past month, and Bulldgos coach Cameron Cirlado lifted the lid on his rise when chatting to Fox League’s Jake Duke pre-game in Bundaberg.

“I think we’ve just suited our attack to him over the past four or five weeks,” Ciraldo said.

“He’s the halfback, he’s the general of the team, he’s got some confidence out of that and hopefully he continues that confidence today and takes the team forward.”

Ciraldo also lauded the “awesome” form of Jacob Kiraz.

“Just his kick defusals, and then his ability to get us out of the back and then coming up with the offloads and finishing tries,” Ciraldo said of what he likes about Kiraz.

“ He’s done really well and he’s only getting better.”

Toby Sexton of the Bulldogs looks to pass during the round 23 NRL match. (Photo by Jeremy Ng/Getty Images)
Toby Sexton of the Bulldogs looks to pass during the round 23 NRL match. (Photo by Jeremy Ng/Getty Images)

2:30pm: CHRISTMAS GIFT

The Bulldogs, Dolphins, and all 15 other NRL clubs are set for a massive financial windfall, with ARL Commission boss Peter V’landys set to deliver a $60 million Christmas bonus to NRL clubs in the biggest one-off financial reward in the code’s 116-year history.

Read more on the monster payday here.

2:15pm: BULLDOGS VS DOLPHINS LATE MAIL

The Dolphins have made a single change to their starting 13 ahead of kick-off, with Tevita Pangai Junior demoted to the interchange in favour of Ray Stone ahead of the clash with his former mob. Both sides remain otherwise unchanged from the 24-hour update after it was confirmed the Jaeman Salmon will return from a jaw fracture via the bench, and will line-up as follows:

Bulldogs: 1. Connor Tracey 2. Jacob Kiraz 3. Bronson Xerri 4. Stephen Crichton 5. Josh Addo-Carr 6. Matt Burton 7. Toby Sexton 8. Josh Curran 9. Reed Mahoney 10. Samuel Hughes 11. Viliame Kikau 12. Jacob Preston 13. Kurt Mann 14. Bailey Hayward 15. Kurtis Morrin 16. Harry Hayes 17. Jaeman Salmon 19. Lipoi Hopoi

Dolphins: 1. Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow 2. Jamayne Isaako 3. Jake Averillo 4. Herbie Farnworth 5. Jack Bostock 6. Kodi Nikorima 7. Isaiya Katoa 8. Jesse Bromwich 9. Max Plath 16. Ray Stone 11. Felise Kaufusi 12. Connelly Lemuelu 13. Kenny Bromwich 14. Oryn Keeley 15. Lachlan Hubner 10. Tevita Pangai Junior 17. Sean O’Sullivan 18. Trai Fuller

Jacob Kiraz of the Bulldogs looks on during the round 23 NRL match. (Photo by Jeremy Ng/Getty Images)
Jacob Kiraz of the Bulldogs looks on during the round 23 NRL match. (Photo by Jeremy Ng/Getty Images)

2:00pm: SUPERCOACH PLAYERS TO WATCH, BULLDOGS VS DOLPHINS

Jacob Kiraz, who leads the NRL in runs made and metres gained, is an ultra-reliable CTW thanks to his massive workrate. The Dolphins are slightly worse than mid-table when it comes to defending the position and have leaked greater than 30 points per game on average over their past four. Has to be a strong try scoring chance.

Matt Burton, lacks the big games of other star halves but he is very reliable having scored 70+ in three of his past five games and with a low score of 52 in that span. See above re the Dolphins leaking big points lately and if that happens again then Burton looks a safe bet to hit 70 again.

Max Plath has been on fire for the Dolphins of late scoring 75, 95 and 114 in his past three games. The move to hooker has dropped his run numbers but that has been more than offset by his huge tackle count and attacking stats when directing the Dolphins close to the line.

Jamayne Isaako is the last player of SuperCoach note in the game and he comes with a warning. The Dolphins winger has fallen into a try-scoring drought of late with just one try from his past six games. Isaako has retained SuperCoach relevance thanks to his excellent goalkicking – but will he get many opportunities to kick against the Bulldogs excellent defence? I think not.

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Originally published as SuperCoach scores, news and analysis from Bulldogs vs Dolphins, Cowboys vs Raiders & Tigers vs Rabbitohs

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Original URL: https://www.ntnews.com.au/sport/nrl/supercoach-news/nrl-live-scores-and-supercoach-updates-bulldogs-vs-dolphins-cowboys-vs-raiders-tigers-vs-rabbitohs/news-story/999e8087e05c1d8840cf2d199f7b9a7c