NRL 2024 Pre-season Challenge Trial Takeaways: Storm v Knights, Warriors v Dolphins, Tigers v Dragons, Titans v Eels
A masterful performance from Parramatta halves Mitch Moses and Dylan Brown against the Titans will have fans licking their lips at the thought of bouncing back from 2023’s horror season. All the talking points from round 2 of the Pre-season Challenge.
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Re-live our coverage of round 2 of the Pre-season Challenge. All the Trial Takeaways below!
TITANS v EELS
-Travis Meyn
Des Hasler is facing a daunting mission to resurrect the Titans after Parramatta’s Mitchell Moses and Bryce Cartwright carved up Gold Coast in a 26-16 trial win.
The Eels were electric on a steamy Sunday afternoon in Ipswich to round out the NRL Pre-season Challenge in impressive fashion following last year’s bottom eight flop.
The gulf in class between the Eels and Titans was glaringly obvious as NSW Origin star Moses pulled the strings against a Gold Coast team that looked far from the finished product.
COMBINATIONS
Eels halves Moses and Dylan Brown against Tanah Boyd and Tom Weaver was a mismatch on paper and proved to be the case as Parramatta opened up a 20-4 lead.
Moses had the ball on a string while Boyd had a moment of brilliance with a looping cut-out pass for Phil Sami to score early before missing the mark numerous times.
The Titans will be relying on veteran five-eighth Kieran Foran (calf tightness) to bring some stability to the spine and Boyd needs to improve following an afternoon to forget.
Parramatta props Junior Paulo and Reagan Campbell-Gillard were a class above their rivals as well after bashing the Titans in the middle.
At halftime starting Titans props Moeaki Fotuaika and Keenan Palasia had three runs between them. Parramatta’s equivalent Campbell-Gillard and Ofahiki Ogden had 16, with Paulo chiming in off the bench with another six carries.
While Titans speedster AJ Brimson pounced on a loose ball and streaked 90m for a try in his centre switch, his defence was exposed and he will be a patience project on the right edge.
Brimson failed a head injury assessment late in the game following a crunching shot that saw Eels winger Maika Sivo placed on report before late tries to Titans Alofiana Khan-Pereira and Jojo Fifita added some respectability to the score.
ROOKIE WATCH
Titans fullback Keano Kin is a tremendous talent but is struggling with the physicality of the NRL.
Kini’s rivals couldn’t get a hand on him in the Hostplus Cup last year, however the NRL is a huge step up.
Kini finished with 16 runs for 139m – handy statistics in the No. 1 jersey – and will start the season at fullback in place of the injured Jayden Campbell (knee).
But defence is a big part of playing fullback and he has a lot of work to do in that aspect.
HOT TAKE
The Eels have been criticised for lacking x-factor in their backline but they boast a backrower unlike any other in the game.
Cartwright was sublime against his former club, scoring a try, setting up another, making three offloads and crunching a few Titans players with stinging tackles.
It has been a remarkable career resurrection for Cartwright since his disastrous stint with the Titans and he can dominate the NRL this year if he produces regular performances like this.
Cartwright is the total package when he wants to be.
FINAL SAY
The Eels were a huge disappointment in missing the finals last year after featuring in the 2022 decider against Penrith.
It’s too early to tell how they’re shaping up this year, but a team with the likes of Moses, Brown, Paulo and Campbell-Gillard should be in the finals mix.
While centre Bailey Simonsson (hamstring) failed to finish the game and Sivo is on report, the Eels are looking in solid shape heading into their round 1 clash with the Bulldogs.
Success-starved Titans fans shouldn’t be expecting miracles in the early part of the NRL Premiership, especially with David Fifita (pec) and Campbell missing.
This is a team coming off back-to-back bottom four finishes and it may be some time before Hasler’s overhaul bears fruit.
DRAGONS V TIGERS
– Michael Carayannis
Fresh from showing glimpses of a potential different outlook this season in the Charity Shield, the Dragons confirmed to their fans that there is some hope in 2024. On the flip side though it was more of the same for the Wests Tigers with new coach Benji Marshall getting a harsh reality into life in the hot seat after the Dragons finished 34-18 winners.
The Dragons totally dominated the Tigers in the battle between the two bottom placed teams from last season. The gulf between the teams was on display early as the Dragons rushed in three first half tries in nine minutes before leading 24-6 at halftime. St George Illawarra players look rejuvenated. From Jaydn Su’A, Moses Suli and Jack Bird. Three players who at times looked uninterested last season have now produced back to back strong performances.
The Tigers though left Mudgee with more questions than answers. A first round bye will give Marshall plenty of time to settle on a halves pairing which has so far looked unconvincing.
The only blemish for the Dragons was an early rib injury to prop Blake Lawrie.
Tigers half Jayden Sullivan was placed on report for a late tackle on Kyle Flanagan.
COMBINATIONS
While there was plenty of interest in the respective halves, the most damaging duo came from St George Illawarra’s left edge of Su’A and Suli. The pair created plenty of havoc. The Dragons halves of Flanagan and Ben Hunt looked good with Flanagan laying on a try for Hunt off his boot. The Tigers starting duo of Sullivan and Aiden Sezer struggled big time. They looked better when Lachie Galvin jumped into the halves.
RECRUIT WATCH
Justin Olam and Raymond Faitala-Mariner turned out for their respective new clubs for the first time. Olam limped from the field early with a leg concern but returned. He produced one trademark big tackle but aside from that had limited impact on the game. Faitala-Mariner started off the bench for the Dragons and was solid enough on the right edge to indicate he is a shot of making his club debut in two weeks.
ROOKIE WATCH
Galvin is giving Marshall some serious thought to starting him in round one. The pre-season talk out of the Tigers focused on new recruits Sezer, Sullivan and Latu Fainu. However, it has been Galvin who has impressed the most. The Dragons rookies received limited action, however big prop Viliami Fifita is pushing hard for a bench spot in round one against the Titans.
HOT TAKE
Jahream Bula could again be a one man show when it comes to attack with the Tigers. He was again at his classy best as he tries to replicate his standout rookie season last year. He had two key match-ups with his opposite Tyrell Sloan and won the battle each time. Bula made a great one-on-one tackle on a runaway Sloan in the first half but Sloan was unable to match those efforts as he allowed Bula to step inside him to score the Tigers first try. Sloan again got burnt late in the game when rookie Heath Mason stepped inside him to score.
FINAL SAY
The Dragons headed into the match as the bookies favourite for the wooden spoon. By the time the season proper starts you’d suggest the Tigers will be strongly backed for their third consecutive last place finish. Marshall has a lot of work to do before he leads his first game in round two while Dragons coach Shane Flanagan can be pleased with what he has seen.
WARRIORS V DOLPHINS
– Martin Garbor
COMBINATIONS
The way Warriors forwards run onto the ball is unlike any other club in the NRL, with the men from across the ditch timing their decoys and hitting holes so methodically you’d think a Swiss watchmaker was involved.
Opposition defences have been guilty of standing on their heels waiting for the attack to make the first move, with big boys Mitch Barnett and Marata Niukore charging into gaps to score.
It all starts with the crafty Wayde Egan at hooker who holds up the markers, while Shaun Johnson has the ball on a string and is in sync with his outside men.
It would’ve been nice to see Isaiya Katoa come on when O’Sullivan went off, with the Dolphins taking 67 minutes to break the line as their attack lacked a spark.
RECRUIT WATCH
One of the Dolphins’ biggest weaknesses in their inaugural campaign was in the centres, but they have solved that dilemma with a couple of key signings.
Herbie Farnworth was arguably the best centre in the world last year and scored a nice try on Saturday, but Jake Averillo has snuck under the radar and could be a player the Bulldogs regret letting go.
Averillo is blessed with incredible speed off the mark and showed off his wheels when he latched onto a Kodi Nikorima kick for their only try of the first half, while Valynce Te Whare remains in contention after he scored late.
ROOKIE WATCH
He played five matches for the Warriors last year, and Taine Tuaupiki looks set to play a prominent role to start the season with regular fullback Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad expected to miss the opening three rounds with a hamstring injury.
Warriors coach Andrew Webster has already said that the returning Roger Tuivasa-Sheck won’t be moved from left centre which means Tuaupiki will likely get first crack in the No.1 jersey.
Tuaupiki showed his value with a game-high 102 metres in the first half before Tuivasa-Sheck was shifted to fullback where he came up with a stunning effort to deny Farnworth a certain try and then set one up in the final minute.
HOT TAKE
The Warriors are going to host a preliminary final this year.
While other members of last season’s top four have lost key players, the Warriors have managed to strengthen their squad and will only get better under Andrew Webster who has them playing a unique brand of footy that suits them to a tee.
FINAL SAY
Saturday showed the highs and lows of the trials.
The Warriors couldn’t have asked for more ahead of their season opener at home against the Sharks, while it was heartbreak for the Dolphins who could be without one of their most important players for all of 2024.
STORM V KNIGHTS
– Brent Read
Melbourne half Jahrome Hughes tuned up for a round one showdown with Nathan Cleary by masterminding the Storm to a 28-10 win over Newcastle in their final trial in Fiji on Saturday.
Hughes was the architect of destruction for Melbourne, laying on a try for Eli Katoa in the first quarter and sending Joe Chan through a hole in the lead up to Young Tonumaipea’s try later in the match.
It was the perfect entree for the main course that lies in wait in a fortnight. The Storm have an impeccable record in round one over the years but Penrith will put them to the test, led by Cleary.
Hughes wasn’t the only big gun to fire for the Storm in a game that was delayed due to the stifling heat at Churchill Park.
Freshly-minted captain Harry Grant helped himself to a try in the final quarter while Jonah Pezet, stepping in for the injured Cameron Munster, scored a solo effort to heap pain on the Knights.
It was an impressive performance from Melbourne and equally concerning for Newcastle coach Adam O’Brien, who would have been livid with his side’s discipline.
Their afternoon was encapsulated in the final quarter when Jacob Saifiti went on report and was sin-binned for a late hit on Tui Kamikamica, sparking a melee.
Saifiti faces a nervous 24 hours as he waits for the match review committee to review the incident.
COMBINATIONS
Even in the absence of Cameron Munster, the Storm’s spine looked slick from the opening kick-off.
Ryan Papenhuyzen got valuable minutes under his belt as he stepped up his return from injury while Pezet looked every bit a first grader playing alongside Hughes in a sign that he has continued his development in the off-season.
The Knights struggled to put plays together although Kalyn Ponga flashed his ability when he ran off Jackson Hastings to create a try for Bradman Best early in the match.
RECRUIT WATCH
All eyes were on Newcastle’s English import Kai Pearce-Paul heading into the game but he endured a difficult afternoon as he made his debut for the Knights.
Pearce-Paul was caught out by Pezet when he sliced the rough for his try and he gave away a silly penalty late in the match for taking out Hughes after a kick.
Melbourne forward Shawn Blore also struggled to make an impact, although he has missed chunks of the pre-season with injury.
Of the recruits on show, the most eye-catching was Melbourne’s Treigh Stewart, signed from St George Illawarra in the off-season.
The fullback came up with a classy piece of play to send Xavier Coates over for a try and looked dangerous.
ROOKIE WATCH
Joe Chan played one game for the Melbourne Storm at the end of last season but he looks ready to push for a permanent spot this year after impressing against the Knights.
The 21-year-old surged through a hole that was opened for him by Hughes and was unlucky not to score himself when he was stopped inches short in the second half.
He could be a smokey for round one.
HOT TAKE
The Knights halves have been an issue for coach Adam O’Brien in the pre-season and he would have walked away from Saturday’s game none the wiser.
Jackson Hastings will occupy one of the spots but the other is up for grabs and Jack Cogger may have pushed his way past Tyson Gamble based on the loss to the Storm.
FINAL SAY
Write Melbourne off at your own peril. The Storm have had their doubters in recent years but they have the best spine in the business and when they’re all fit and firing, they can beat anyone.
It may have only been a trial but there was no Munster and no Nelson Asofa-Solomona on Saturday. They will only get better.
Originally published as NRL 2024 Pre-season Challenge Trial Takeaways: Storm v Knights, Warriors v Dolphins, Tigers v Dragons, Titans v Eels
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