Brooks seals deal as Tigers fight off brave Bulldogs
They haven’t played finals since 2011 but Wests Tigers moved into ninth place on the NRL ladder after a dramatic win over Canterbury.
They haven’t played finals since 2011 but Wests Tigers moved into ninth place on NRL ladder after a dramatic and almost suicidal one-point win over Canterbury on Sunday.
Victory, which only arrived after a 78th-minute Luke Brooks field goal, keeps Wests Tigers in the finals hunt despite still being four points adrift of eighth spot.
Ahead 22-6, Wests Tigers conceded 22 unanswered points against last-placed Canterbury to almost blow their big lead and their season.
The Tigers shouldn’t celebrate too hard though. They struggled to beat the wooden spoon favourites, have a horror draw and will start underdogs in every game left this season.
The Tigers play Sydney Roosters (round 15), Penrith (16), Manly (17), Souths (18), Melbourne (19) and Parramatta (20).
They sit in ninth place on the ladder — the same position they have finished for the past two gut-wrenching seasons.
Many believe 22 competition points will seal a finals spot in this reduced season, possibly 20. That means Wests Tigers must win at least four – probably five — of their final six games to qualify.
A late try to centre Joey Leilua – he returned to the bubble after travelling to Canberra for family reasons – was followed by the matchwinning 32m field goal from Brooks to give the Tigers a sixth victory of the season.
A Canterbury win would have relegated the hapless Broncos to 16th place, the first time Brisbane would’ve been last so deep into a season.
Wests Tigers coach Michael Maguire kicked a chair in utter frustration during halftime in a round 12 against New Zealand Warriors. Who knows who – or what – he may have booted on Sunday had his side blown a 16-point led to the struggling Bulldogs.
Asked if his team gave him a heart attack, Maguire said: “Yeah, they did but it was nice to see they found a way to win. We had control, we lost control. I just feel the group is better than where we are. They found the set they needed to get the field goal.”
There were seven tries posted in a loose if not entertaining first half. The field goal was especially satisfying for Brooks, who was only reinstated a fortnight ago after being shifted to the bench.
“I was feeling pretty nervous to be honest. But I struck it pretty well — I’ve been practising a lot at training and it paid off,” Brooks told Fox League.
“(Being back) obviously means a lot. I just want to get out there and do my bit for the team.
At the end of the day we just want to win and that’s what we got today.”
Aside from Brooks, veteran Benji Marshall produced three try assists, plus a 40/20, prop Josh Aloiai ran for 206 metres while backrower Luke Garner scored twice and completed 31 tackles
Marshall rolled his ankle and was nearly replaced at halftime.
“With where we were at that moment in time, he wanted to stay out there,” Maguire said. “He got the job done, that’s the main thing. He played until the back-end of the game. The boys definitely know to compete.”
They may have lost but – yet again – Canterbury showed plenty of courage. The Bulldogs scored four consecutive tries to take the lead with 10 minutes remaining but just couldn’t seal the deal
“There was a 10-minute period where they scored three tries — we were terrible defensively,” said Bulldogs interim coach, Steve Georgallis. “Geez, we did a great job coming back into that game and actually hit the lead.
“It is one of those years, maybe someone ran over a cat. It’s tough to take but the players’ effort has always been there. They’re learning but unfortunately that didn’t get us the win.”
Canterbury prop Dylan Napa was placed on report in the 27th minute for allegedly leading with his head. Bulldogs rookie Matt Doorey made his NRL debut, scoring a try in the 38th minute.
Kieran Foran posted two try assists before rolling his ankle but returned late in the game. Jeremy Marshall-King, the half-brother of opponent Benji, was also impressive. Canterbury winger Marcelo Montoya conceded two tries through horrible defensive reads.
The Daily Telegraph
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