Thrilling last-gasp win over Roosters caps roller-coaster week for Dragons

St George Illawarra’s recalled centre Zac Lomax kicked an after-the-siren conversion to end a six-game losing run and hand interim coach Ryan Carr a stunning 24-22 win over the Roosters.

In the same week the Dragons sacked Anthony Griffin, winger Mat Feagai scored a try off a second kick with only 13 seconds left on Friday night to condemn the Roosters to a third straight loss.

In a wild match, in which the lead changed five times, Feagai’s try in the dying seconds saved Moses Suli’s blushes after James Tedesco stole the ball one-on-one with just four minutes left to hand the Roosters a late lead.

Lomax, who has had an underwhelming year with his goal-kicking, stepped up to land the simple conversion from five metres next to the left upright and send Dragons fans into raptures at Netstrata Jubilee Stadium.

It was their first win since round five, and their first win against the Roosters in a non-Anzac Day clash since the grand final in 2010, with the Roosters’ misery compounded by Victor Radley being placed on report for an alleged headbutt and Brandon Smith breaking his thumb.

Asked if he was emotional at the end of a week he watched ally Griffin leave the club, captain Ben Hunt said: “I did get a bit, just at the end there. Apart from last week we’ve been in every game, put in a lot of effort, been fighting. It felt like we deserved that tonight. We finally got a bounce of the ball there at the end. I’m pretty emotional.”

Talatau Amone truies to break away.Credit: Getty

It came in the same week as the Dragons intensify negotiations with Roosters assistant Jason Ryles to take over from 2024.

Ryles walked along the back of the grandstand at Kogarah pre-game, in lockstep with Trent Robinson, past the home coaching box, and must have wondered: is this going to be my home?

Well, if he wants it to be, it will.

Jason Ryles watches from the sideline.Credit: Getty

In the week of Griffin’s axing, St George Illawarra were doing St George Illawarra things. They were about to lose a game they led with four minutes to go, and only because Tedesco stripped the ball from Suli two metres out from their line.

They started like a team that had just lost its coach, and almost finished with a scoreline like nothing had changed. Their margins of defeat in the last six weeks under Griffin: two, six, one, two, two and 20. This time, however, they got home by two.

Having fought their way back from 14 points down to lead, and then concede it again thanks to Jaydn Su’A’s effort inside the final eight minutes, Tedesco thought he had burgled the Roosters back into the winner’s circle when he took the ball from Suli after he fielded a Luke Keary kick.

But then the chaos.

Carr took three days to make the changes Griffin resisted. The recalled Lomax was shifted to his preferred right side, Suli on the left. Jayden Sullivan climbed off the bench in the first half and went to hooker, allowing Ben Hunt to stay at halfback.

Mathew Feagai celebrates his late try with teammates.Credit: Getty

More importantly, the scoreboard changed.

By the end of the first half, Radley, Lindsay Collins and club debutant Nathan Brown were all on report.

Radley, for once, was lucky not to be in the sin bin after appearing to make a headbutting motion at Blake Lawrie, in retaliation to a skirmish after Lomax was put on report for a tackle on Corey Allan.

On the Radley incident, Robinson said he thought “it was a scuffle”.

“It definitely looked like a head-butt to me,” Hunt said. “But the ref said they reviewed it in the bunker, so … that’s up to them up there.”

Lomax booted the Dragons to a 14-point lead through an early second half penalty goal, but the Roosters woke from a mid-season slumber with a double to Keary and a try for Tedesco within 11 second-half minutes to hit the lead.

Su’A scored when Hunt fooled the defence from dummy-half. Tedesco fooled Suli. Then the final play, with Tyrell Sloan backing up Hunt’s kick with his own for Feagai to score.

“I don’t want to embarrass [Hunt],” Carr said. “The leadership he has shown this week in a tough week, he could have every excuse not to come out and do what he did. He’s someone who’s played 300 games, he’s done it all. He could have every excuse in the world not to keep coming out and doing what he’s doing, but he’s just the ultimate competitor and the ultimate captain.”

For once, Hunt and the Dragons had the last laugh.

ST GEORGE ILLAWARRA DRAGONS 24 (Moses Suli, Ben Hunt, Jaydn Su’A, Mat Feagai tries; Zac Lomax 4 goals) defeated SYDNEY ROOSTERS 22 (Luke Keary 2, James Tedesco 2 tries; Joseph Suaalii 3 goals) at Netstrata Jubilee Stadium. Referee: Peter Gough. Crowd: 9007.

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