Innholdsfortegnelse for 2019 - Round 10 i Big League Weekly Edition

WESTS Tigers hard-man Chris McQueen said Benji Marshall’s return from a hamstring injury was the catalyst for a dominant performance from the Tigers as they completely outclassed the Panthers. “I think Benji grew another leg out there,” McQueen said. “He’s been out for a while and he was close to coming back [in Round 8], so he was pretty excited to be out there playing footy. Having that sort of consistency week-in, week-out is a big part of being successful in the NRL.” McQueen also had his best game of the season, playing 80 minutes and racking up a line-break and try assist. It’s been a prolific return to form for the 31-year-old, who spent most of 2018 playing reserve grade. He credits an honest conversation with coach Michael Maguire…

BEFORE Magic Round leaves us I wanted to reveal a few ‘tricks’ that are all to do with some of the key statistics we quote in rugby league. I made the admission in commentary for Fox League last weekend that I am a rugby league nerd. I love stats and uncovering bits and pieces of data about teams and players. But now I make another admission – there is a fair bit of smoke and mirrors about plenty of the key numbers. Do they really tell a story? Completion rates are probably the most deceptive of them all. Heading into Magic Round, the Bulldogs had the best completion rate in the competition. They are last on the ladder. The Roosters have the second-worst completion rate, yet are top of the…

COMING off a dominant win over the Panthers, the Wests Tigers are determined to get their first back-to-back wins since Rounds 1 and 2 when they take on the Storm on Thursday. Their impressive opening 20 minutes of last weekend’s game set up the win and demonstrated a well-executed gameplan, but Chris McQueen knows that the squad can’t let that dominance go to their heads and become complacent. “[Being complacent] is something that we’ll touch on. Obviously we had a good win [against the Panthers], but now it’s straight back to the drawing board,” he said. “The NRL is a tough competition. A win doesn’t mean anything if we can’t back it up. “There’s still plenty of things that we can work on, but one thing we’ve been talking about…

CAMERON Munster has brushed off suggestions he’s a certainty to wear the Queensland No.6, declaring there are a handful of players who are good enough to earn a spot in the halves. The Storm five-eighth currently sits atop the Dally M leaderboard and is coming off a stunning outing against the Eels, but he knows strong competition means his spot in the Queensland squad isn’t a fait accompli. “It’s hard to say. I haven’t got the six cemented at all. We’ve got [Anthony] Milford and Michael Morgan. Milford is hitting his straps at the moment, running the ball and looking really dangerous,” Munster said. “Michael Morgan showed that year he made the grand final against us [in 2017] that he is capable of playing half and then we have got…

THEY’VE started the year as first-half bullies, but the defending premiers are yet to produce a complete 80-minute performance. The Tri-colours have obliterated teams during their winning streak but have been guilty of allowing opponents back into the contest. It’s an area they’d like to address heading into this week’s clash with the Broncos, a team they blew off the park in Round 4. “We’re pleased with the win, but we know we’re still far from our best,” Crichton told Big League after their win over Canberra. “The fact that we’re getting the two points is a plus, but we’ve got things we need to work on. We’ve got things to clean up.”…

INJURIES should have put the Sea Eagles on the back foot this season, yet they remain fifth on the ladder after nine rounds The side has been without Daly Cherry-Evans (ankle), Jorge Taufua (calf), Tom Trbojevic (hamstring), Dylan Walker (welfare), Lachlan Croker (hamstring) and Addin Fonua-Blake (meniscus), and lost Toafofoa Sipley (knee) last week. “We’ve proved that we can perform without all our star players,” Jake Trbojevic said. “It wasn’t our best performance [against Brisbane] but we can take confidence from the match.” “We have to keep performing and finding ways to win. We want to stay in the top eight –that’s a goal of ours.”…

HULKING prop Braden Hamlin-Uele has emerged as a game-changer this season after playing a starring role off the bench. Having struggled for game-time in 2017 and 2018, the former Cowboy has taken advantage of the Sharks’ crippling injury toll to notch five-straight games for the first time in his career. After scoring a crucial try against the Storm in Round 8, Hamlin-Uele churned through his toughest workload in Brisbane when Andrew Fifita was forced off early with a hamstring complaint. “I didn’t think I’d be [playing first grade] in 2019. I was happy biding my time in Newtown and just seeing what the year brings me, but to play five games in a row, it’s a blessing and I’m so honoured to be doing it,” he said. “Last year I…

After interviewing Jayden Brailey last year, Footyhead had a few questions for his brother Blayke How competitive was backyard footy growing up? Yeah, pretty full-on! You’d always try to put a big shot on. We always played together, we’d train together, we did everything together. And now you’ve played NRL together! We didn’t think it’d come this quick, but we always dreamed of it. My family is really proud, and hopefully for the rest of this year we can play more games. That’s the trouble– you both play hooker! Yeah, I was second here. I don’t know what’s going to happen. I haven’t spoken to any clubs. For the moment, we’re just enjoying playing together. If you do move on, will you enjoy playing against each other? It’ll be fun!…

Form: Craig Bellamy’s ‘rev-up’ of his players after their loss to the Sharks led to a stunning response against the Eels and the bad news for upcoming opponents is that it’s unlikely to be a one-off effort. Bellamy and Cameron Smith will ensure that the team knuckles down before earning the right to open up in attack as they did in the second half at Suncorp. Wests Tigers will be prepared to roll up their sleeves and play a tough defensive game, just as they did in back-to-back wins against the Storm in 2018. The Tigers took advantage of Penrith’s defensive malaise to pour into the back-field last Friday but there will be no expectation that the Storm will offer the same latitude. History: The Tigers had never won consecutive…

Form: The Titans were their own worst enemies when they let the Sharks off the hook in the opening game of the Magic Round last Thursday. After working themselves into a dominant position, poor ball control and ill-discipline let the Sharks back into the contest, and two unnecessary penalties in the final five minutes allowed them to seal the result with a late try. The Bulldogs spent much of their Magic Round game against the Knights in catch-up mode after Newcastle skipped away to a 16-0 lead. Reimis Smith swung the momentum with an intercept try but despite closing to 16-10, they couldn’t go on with it. History: The Bulldogs have occasionally been guilty of under-estimating the Titans, which may explain the 8-all record in clashes between these teams since…

Form: The Dragons’ gains from their four-game winning streak have been eroded following successive losses to the Roosters, Eels and Warriors. Over the past fortnight, they’ve given up two healthy leads – a situation coach Paul McGregor will be determined to rectify. Although they enter Round 10 on the same points as the Dragons, the Knights have followed a different path. While the Dragons are striving to avoid a fourth-straight loss, the Knights are chasing four consecutive wins. History: A Newcastle representative team achieved one of the most famous victories in the game’s history when they knocked over the champion St George team to win a State Cup semi-final in 1964 so it’s ironic that the modern Dragons have been so dominant against the Knights. St George Illawarra have won…

I OFTEN joke about how bad I am with numbers – for those who know me, these jokes are pretty close to the truth – and in all my life as a rugby league fan, I didn’t give much notice to stats. That is until I started working at Big League. Not only are we treasure trove of printable figures about players’ games every weekend, we often refer to stats in stories and to simply quantify how good individual performances are. For example, against the Cowboys on Sunday, Rabbitohs hooker Damien Cook made three try assists, two line-breaks, two line-break assists and scored a try. We all saw the magic with our own eyes, but those figures make it glaringly obvious that he killed it. Coaches are always talking about…

QUEENSLAND State of Origin hopefuls Will Chambers and Coen Hess have praised coach Kevin Walters’ honesty ahead of this year’s selection. The incumbent Origin stars are under pressure to retain their place in the Maroons side, but Walters hasn’t left them in the dark. “The best thing about ‘Kevvie’ is he really cares about his Queensland boys and he’s very honest with us,” Hess told Big League. “No matter if you’ve played 30 Origins or none, he shows a great interest in us. “He came up at the start of the year and sat down with me, and said there will be some changes at Origin so he wants to see the best from me. “He gave me a call two or three weeks ago and asked me how I…

At 29 years old, some might say you’re heading toward the back end of your career Have you put much thought into what you want to do after the NRL? Yeah, I’m getting old. I started studying education way back in 2011 and I didn’t really like it, so I stopped for a few years. Now I’m at Griffith University doing a Bachelor of Commerce majoring in property development. How do you juggle that with your footy commitments? It’s taken me a bit of time to get through, but I’ve got just a couple of subjects left to go so I’m nearly finished. I have heaps of support from the NRL and the Titans, which is good. I want to try and bump that out over the next two years.…

IT was an experiment that began the greatest overhaul of rugby league in its history – changing it from the “bash and barge” era of almost six decades, where one team could strangle their opponents into submission with often 80-90 per cent of possession. Until 1966, rugby league was played under an unlimited tackle rule, with teams keeping possession until they either relinquished it with a mistake, it was raked back by the defending ‘marker’ in the play -the-ball or they were penalised. This was coupled with the rule that the defensive side could be level with the play-the-ball, then three yards back (in 1956) or five yards (1966). Over the years, officialdom tinkered with the defensive-line rules, scrum formations and penalty rulings but league was still seen as stop-start…

LIFE in the post-Billy Slater era was always going to be a challenge for the Melbourne Storm, but young gun Ryan Papenhuyzen is ready to prove he can be the club’s long-term fullback ahead of his starting debut this Thursday. The 20-year-old came through the Tigers system and, fittingly, will play his first game in the No.1 jersey against them as cover for Jahrome Hughes, who was forced off in Round 9 with a head knock following a late hit by Eel Maika Sivo. Papenhuyzen has played six matches off the bench in 2019, but saved his best performance for Magic Round as he tore Parramatta to shreds with 137 metres, three line-breaks, a try and two assists in 32 minutes. Injuries and issues surrounding his small frame plagued his…

HAVING confidence and possessing skill can be equally important for NRL players, but no matter how skilful someone is, they’ll see little reward on the field if they don’t back themselves. That’s been the dilemma for North Queensland outside back Justin O’Neill. The former State of Origin representative knows he has the talent to remain a successful top flight player, but he admits it’s confidence that has let him down of late. Poor form and a resulting lack of confidence saw him dropped to reserve grade with Townsville earlier this season, but since returning to first grade in Round 6, he’s regained his poise and it’s been telling. “Rugby league can be a mind game at times,” O’Neill tells Big League. “The best thing I can do now is play…

HALFBACK Mitch Moses slammed his team’s lack of consistency following a 60-point thrashing by the Storm just six days after an impressive win over the Dragons. “It seems to be win-loss-win-loss for us at the moment and if we want to mix it with the top sides you’ve got to play consistent footy,” Moses said. “We’re turning up for one week then having a holiday the next. You just can’t do that in the NRL.” The Eels have lost every game that they’ve played away from Sydney this season and Moses says that trend needs to be addressed before they head to Townsville to face the Cowboys on Saturday. “We need to get a grip on travelling and when we travel we have to play good footy, we have to…

IT’S been a bumpy ride so far for the Titans, who have strung together just two wins from the opening nine rounds. Young gun Alexander Brimson says it will be do-or-die this weekend when they take on the Bulldogs – who are in a similar position. “If we don’t start our run now, we’re not going to start it at all. Everyone’s going to approach this next game as a must-win – especially being at home,” he told Big League. Brimson filled in for injured five-eighth Tyrone Roberts in the Titans’ loss to the Sharks last week, but he’ll slot back to the bench utility role for Saturday’s game. Though he’d prefer to play the full 80 minutes, he’s just grateful to be in the team. “I enjoy being out…

HE may have been awarded the 2018 Dally M Interchange Player of the Year award and become crucial to the Warriors as a bench utility, but Jazz Tevaga knows he still has a lot to learn about the dummy-half role. The 23-year-old (above) has been regularly picking the brain of team-mate, premiership winner and former Kiwi rep Issac Luke to improve his game. “[Luke] is a veteran so I’ve learnt a lot off him over the past few years that he’s been here,” Tevaga told Big League. “He’s a different kind of hooker to me though, he’s more of a runner. I try to take what I can from his game and try to implement it into mine.”…

TRYING to determine the best attacking duo in the NRL is a debate that could last a lifetime, but it would be hard to mount a case against South Sydney pair Damien Cook and Cody Walker after another masterclass against the Cowboys. Cook tore North Queensland’s middle to shreds with three try assists, a try and a game-high 51 tackles, while Walker proved elusive as ever with his league-leading 10th try of the season. The pair now find themselves locked on 10 Dally M points – four behind Melbourne’s Cameron Munster – and loom as key figures in the minor premiership race. “I think ‘Cooky’ showed against the Cowboys how good he can be when he’s on his game,” winger Campbell Graham told Big League. “He’s been performing really well…

DESPITE sitting in the bottom four, forward Coen Hess says he can see the Cowboys starting to regain their mojo. The side suffered a loss to South Sydney last Sunday, but Hess is optimistic they can turn their season around because he is seeing good signs at training. “We started the season really inconsistently, but we’re starting to find our mojo a bit,” he told “We’ve been training really well as of late, there’s been a lot more talk and people are starting to understand their role a lot more. Training in general has been really enjoyable and I think it’s showing on the field.”…

Form: The Panthers’ training ground would have been an uncomfortable place earlier in the week as players were held accountable for a succession of dismal performances that culminated in a 30-4 mauling by the Wests Tigers. Confidence levels among the Panthers plumbed new depths last Friday as the Tigers trampled their way to five tries inside the first 20 minutes. The Panthers will have an opportunity to earn redemption in front of a home crowd but it will require a seismic shift in attitude. The Warriors rediscovered a fighting spirit to overturn a month of losing results and down the Dragons. Stephen Kearney’s men fought back from an 18-6 half-time deficit to outscore the Dragons 20-0 in the second term. History: The Panthers have established a dominant record against the…

Form: Mesmerised by Damien Cook’s magic at Suncorp, the Cowboys rallied to get themselves back into the contest by half-time, but any hope of a comeback was snuffed out when the Rabbitohs scored two tries in the opening 10 minutes of the second half. Michael Morgan and Jason Taumalolo showed glimpses of their best, but support was limited. The Eels were headed for a crushing defeat at the hands of the Storm last Saturday long before Maika Sivo was sin-binned. It was already 30-6, but with a one-man advantage the Storm went for the jugular and added three converted tries on their way to a 54-point rout. History: The Eels hold a one-game lead in head-to-head results between these teams while last year’s games were shared one apiece. Parramatta won…

Form: Both teams have been forced to deal with a spate of injuries but key players are beginning to filter back. Matt Moylan’s return from a hamstring injury has been delayed by a week, but Addin Fonua-Blake will restore power to the Sea Eagles’ engine room. The Sharks got the better of the Titans to claim their fifth win of the season, while the Sea Eagles were overpowered by a resurgent Brisbane the following night. History: There is far more to Manly’s historical dominance of the Sharks than their grand final victories of 1973 and 1978. The Sea Eagles have won more than 70 per cent of all games between these clubs since they first met over 50 years ago, and they’ve won 15 of the past 17 encounters. While…

ALL 14 teams enjoyed last weekend off as the Queensland Residents faced the NSW Residents at Dolphin Stadium. The Queensland side scored seven tries to four to record an impressive 42-22 win. Following nine rounds of the Intrust Super Cup, Sunshine Coast remain undefeated after thrashing South Logan 72-6 a fortnight ago. The Bears rose to second on the ladder with a 48-0 victory over Redcliffe in Round 9. Tweed Seagulls are closing in on a top six position following their comfortable win against Norths Devils. Norths Devils made it four on the trot with a strong win over Northern Pride at Piggabeen Sports Complex. Ipswich scored their fourth triumph of the season, defeating CQ Capras by 10 points. They are four points off the top six, so have some…

HILLS DISTRICT 36 (P Bolea 3, S Keates 2, J Brennan, D Baumann tries; H Siejka 4 goals) D. GLEBE-BURWOOD 18 (T Tamou, L Schaumkel, P Nakubuwai tries; J Chong Sun 2, Nakubuwai goals). WESTERN SUBURBS 43 (J Gibbons 2, I Rabuatoka 2, J Davis, E Carter, J Daley tries; K Coakes 7 goals; O Slaimankhel field goal) D. CABRAMATTA 24 (J Latham, J Tangitau, S Gorman, Z Nicholls tries; T Mata’afa2, B Marschke, A Carling goals). MOUNTIES 28 (J Payne 2, J Williams 2, R Vai tries; S Duggan 4 goals) D. GUILDFORD 8 (J Camroux, J Ferguson tries). ASQUITH 34 (W Solway 2, J Remfrey 2, S Jarvis, K Koro, R Travers tries; B Goodman 2, M Pearsall goals) D. BROTHERS 20 (A Crichton, A Vulavou, J Dokonivalu,…

ONE week after the Queensland Residents side dominated a star-studded New South Wales side, we have another representative game on our hands. This weekend New South Wales’ best of the best in the under-16s age group will go head to head in the City v Country match-up. The match will be played on Friday May 17 at Panthers Stadium, giving Penrith Panthers fans a taste-tester before the NRL match played later that night. The City side boasts a number of players from the Knights and Bulldogs Harold Matthews Cup teams, who faced off in the grand final a couple of weeks ago. City hooker Noah Nailagoliva scored a try for the Knights in the grand final and is expected to have an impact on the game once again. City fullback…

THE optimists out west will tell you Penrith were 2-7 in 2017 and recovered to make the top eight. Unfortunately, even those with a positive outlook are resigned to the fact the current situation at the Panthers is virtually unsalvageable. Rock bottom is a place few teams get to, but the Panthers hit their lowest point last week when they were blown off the park in the opening 20 minutes by a Wests Tigers side desperate to prove a point to former coach Ivan Cleary. Tackles were missed, holes appeared out of nowhere, and as a result, the Tigers raced in four tries in the space of six minutes en route to a comprehensive 30-4 win, consigning the Panthers to 15th spot on the ladder. Cleary cut a dejected figure…

BLAKE Green knows better than most what it’s like to be in and out of first grade as a rookie half, and now the Warriors veteran is using his own experiences to help the club’s young playmakers as they deal with the challenge of playing reserve grade. While injuries have dictated some personnel changes, form has been the main factor for Stephen Kearney at the selection table. Adam Keighran was given first crack in the No.6 jersey, but he was dropped after three games for Chanel Harris-Tavita, who seemingly had the position locked down before the Warriors swooped on Kodi Nikorima, who made his club debut in Magic Round and appears to have the position sewn up for the rest of 2019. “It’s never ideal when you’re swapping around,” Green…

8 Terry Lamb Just the second player to amass 300 first-grade games and the holder of the premiership’s appearances record for 17 years, Lamb set new standards for durability on the 1986 Kangaroo Tour. The versatile five-eighth played all 20 of Australia’s matches in Britain and France – an unprecedented feat. The record for most games on a tour, however, belongs to Larry O’Malley; the Easts forward played 34 of 46 games on Australia’s inaugural trip to the Old Dart in 1908-09. Lamb remains one of only four players to have reached the 350-game barrier in first grade. 7 Clive Churchill ‘The Little Master’ debuted for NSW in 1948, starting a run of 99 consecutive representative matches. Churchill’s streak infamously ended one game short of a century when selectors controversially…

Mary cheering up Well done to St George Illawarra coach Paul McGregor for cheering up a young Dragons fan last Saturday night. After the Dragons suffered a disappointed loss to the Warriors, McGregor spotted a young boy crying in the crowd and then invited him into the coach’s box. It shows that rugby league is more than a game. Legends flood the Hunter The popular Legends of League tournament will be moving to Newcastle this year, with games to be played at McDonald Jones Stadium on November 16. The organisers are banking on a bigger crowd to make sure the tournament continues over the next few years and contributions to the Mark Hughes Foundation grow. Players who have signed on in 2019 so far include Gorden Tallis, Danny Buderus, Wendell…

HAVE you ever thought what State of Origin teams would look life if the selectors picked on statistics alone? We understand stats aren’t the only way to evaluate form, and at times they can be deceiving, but they can also be a great indication of who’s hot and who’s not. With Origin selection just two weeks away, it’s time to start thinking about who deserves a place in Kevin Walters’ and Brad Fittler’s respective Origin sides. With the help of our friends at STATS and using the complex weighting system adjacent, we’ve come up with the best starting sides based purely on statistics. Players must have played a minimum of five NRL games in 2019. These squads aren’t our predicted teams for Origin I, nor are they necessarily the best…

WINNING and losing games matters, but hooker Cameron McInnes is more concerned about how St George Illawarra are performing overall. Nine rounds into the season, the Dragons sit 10th on the ladder with four wins and five losses. “It’s important we turn our performances around and let the results look after themselves,” McInnes (right) told Big League. “Wins and losses can start to become important, but it’s more important to perform better and we’ve got to do that first. We can’t worry too much about wins and losses, just the process.” The Dragons have blown half-time leads over the past two weeks and McInnes has called for drastic improvement. “That’s two weeks in a row that our second halves have been awful. That’s something we need to look at,” he…

FULLBACK Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad has called on his team to start better if they want to remain successful in 2019. The Raiders conceded four tries in the opening 27 minutes, including two in six minutes, against the Roosters last Sunday. They fought back to within a converted try but fell short to suffer their third loss of the season. “We need to start better,” Nicoll-Klokstad told Big League. “We were one pass away from a draw and golden point, but we need to be better than that.” The Green Machine now face South Sydney on Saturday night. “Souths are great starters so we need to be ready from the kick-off,” he said. “We know if we can get the start right when can beat the big teams.”…

ALTHOUGH they sit last on the ladder, Bulldogs fans can take pleasure from the rise of Ofahiki Ogden. The 22-year-old made his NRL debut late last season and has since become a huge asset to the club. “My goal each week is to challenge the best forwards in each team,” Ogden told Big League. “I pride myself on the way I play. I never thought I’d be playing off the bench in first grade this year, but I put my head down and worked hard and I think that’s what’s got me to where I am. Now I’ve got to perform each and every week.” The Auckland-born prop has the full support of his team-mates and he credits them for helping him reach his true potential. “All of the forwards…

FINALS footy is the furthest thing from anyone’s mind at the moment, but Friday night looms as Penrith’s grand final as they attempt to salvage a horror season on and off the field. This week’s clash with the Warriors is the perfect opportunity to right some wrongs following last week’s limp effort. “Every game is a statement game for us now,” Wayde Egan – who will miss the game against the Warriors due to injury – told Big League. “We’ve got to win pretty much every game if we want to play finals, and that starts on Friday in front of our home fans.”…

FORWARD pack leader Matt Lodge says revenge won’t be a factor heading into Friday’s clash with the Roosters after the defending premiers smashed them at the SCG in Round 4. “They towelled us up down there about a month ago, so we’ve got to turn up to make up for that,” Lodge told Big League. “They’re the best side in the competition by far, but we need to get our season going with a win. There’ll be no message coming from us – the only thing we can do is pack the shovel and get ready for another dig. “I think it starts with me playing well, so if I can do that, the rest of the boys seem to follow. I know if my performance is up to scratch…

UTILITY Kurt Mann is prepared to play whatever position required of him by coach Nathan Brown. Mann was recruited to play hooker but has been forced to change positions several times. Even last week, he shifted to the wing to cover for Edrick Lee. “I’m happy to play wherever I’m needed,” Mann told Big League. “If someone goes down, it’s more than likely that I’m going to get moved.” Although Mann is happy to help however he can, he’s eager to secure a place in the first 13. “The point I’d like to get to is starting, but the utility role is what I’ve got to do and hopefully I can do it well,” he said.…

DAMIEN Cook was the player of the weekend, with a stunning three try assist effort and a nice try of his own boosting him to 98. Storm five-eighth Cameron Munster ripped the Eels to shreds for 95, while Broncos five-eighth Anthony Milford is shaping up a serious point-of-difference option after notching 82. Milford now has a three-round average over 70 and has made at least 25 points just in kick metres in four-straight games. It would have been a great week to buy James Tedesco (81) after two quiet games in three weeks had lowered his value; but that $700k price tag is now headed back north. The price rises for Payne Haas (77) just keep on going after the best score of his young career to date and he…

Form: The Broncos responded impressively under pressure last weekend to score a determined victory over Manly following their drubbing from the Rabbitohs in Round 8. Team-mates rallied behind captain Darius Boyd, who played his best game of the season, while Anthony Milford was also much improved. The Roosters had to fight hard to hold off a fast-finishing Canberra last Sunday as injuries hit hard and left several players in unfamiliar roles. Trent Robinson’s team dazzled early to establish a 30-6 lead but the 24-point buffer was only just enough to keep the Raiders at bay. The win was their eighth in succession. History: These teams met early last month at the SCG where the Roosters turned on a dazzling attacking display to win 36-4. The Broncos were confident after winning…

Form: Outclassed early by a team in red-hot form, the Raiders maintained their composure to play their way back into last Sunday’s game against the Roosters and could have forced golden point. The Roosters looked slick early, but once injuries began to bite, the Raiders took their chances and steadily reined them in. Jack Wighton threatened with ball in-hand and off the boot, while Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad continued his sizzling form. Rabbitohs hooker Damien Cook proved untouchable in the opening half against the Cowboys last Sunday, his pace from the ruck repeatedly catching the opposition short. History: The Rabbitohs were the Raiders’ first opponents when they entered the competition in 1982. Souths have never improved on their 30-point winning margin from that night, although they equalled it in 2013. The Raiders…

MOUNTIES suffered their first loss of the season in Round 8, going down to an understrength Penrith side at Aubrey Keech Reserve. Panthers fullback Dylan Edwards was named man of the match and has been recalled to the NRL team this week. The Bulldogs dominated Blacktown at Lottoland to move into the top eight. Ronaldo Mulitalo scored a double to help the Jets beat the Rabbitohs by two points at Henson Park. The Warriors scored their second win of the season, beating the Knights by 16 points at Mt Smart Stadium. The Bears are third on the ladder following their 12-point win against Western Suburbs at North Sydney Oval. Wentworthville made it two wins from two attempts at Bankwest Stadium, chalking up a 30-14 triumph against the Dragons. CANTERBURY 38…

NORTHERN PRIDE remain on top of the table despite suffering their first defeat of the season at the hands of the Mackay Cutters. It was a somewhat similar situation at Gold Park where the Mustangs claimed their first win of 2019 courtesy of a last-gasp Sam Thompson field goal to sink the Blackhawks. Burleigh continued to set the attacking pace with a 50-6 thumping of the Dolphins, with Jayden Campbell bagging a hat-trick to force Redcliffe to the foot of the table. Elsewhere, Wynnum Manly and the Easts Tigers notched comprehensive victories to solidify their positions in the top four, while the Falcons piled on eight tries in their big win over the Magpies. With all teams fresh after last week’s bye, all eyes will be on Barlow Park when…

The Storm have won five of their past six games at AAMI Park. Raiders centre Michael Oldfield has scored six tries in five games against the Rabbitohs. The Warriors have not won at Penrith since 2012. Newcastle coach Nathan Brown will have the chance to achieve his 100th coaching victory. Warriors winger David Fusitu’a has scored seven tries in his past six games against Penrith. Roosters half Cooper Cronk requires one more try to reach 100 NRL four-pointers. Manly have won 15 of their past 17 games against the Sharks. The Sharks have won five of their past six home games.…