Dragons young gun Talatau Amone has bagged an early double to get his side out to a 12-6 lead over the Raiders in a must-win clash at GIO Stadium.
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19TH MINUTE
Talatau Amone backed up his try with another one. Jack Bird got around a Raider and then offloaded to Amone who dived over the line.
6TH MINUTE
The Dragons hit back through young gun Talatau Amone who had to push through several Raiders players to ground the ball.
1ST MINUTE
It didn’t take long for the Raiders to get on the board with Hudson Young pouncing on a Zac Woolford grubber to score.
MATCH PREVIEW
Ricky Stuart will be forced to watch from home when his Raiders take on the Dragons in a must-win clash at GIO Stadium to keep their final hopes alive.
Stuart was suspended by the NRL after his “weak-gutted dog” spray directed at Panthers player Jaeman Salmon last weel.
The Dragons are also still in the finals hunt but after losing to the Sharks last week they now sit two wins outside of the eight.
If they are to get sneak into the finals they’ll need to win all four of their last games — but they’ll do it without veteran Tariq Sims who has been banned for a careless high tackle. Josh McGuire moves into the starting side for Sims and Tyrell Fuemaono joins the bench.
In a boost for the side, Cody Ramsey returns from a knee injury at fullback, forcing Moses Mbye into the centers and Jack Bird to lock.
The Raiders welcome back electric fullback Xavier Savage from an ankle injury but will be without star prop Joe Tapine and winger Nick Cotric.
Tapine has succumbed to a rib injury that was suffered last week, while Cotric is out through suspension.
Emre Guler replaces Tapine in the starting pack with Corey Horsburgh joining the bench after a successful return from pneumonia via reserve grade last week.
Meanwhile, Savage’s return allows Albert Hopoate shift to the wing to replace Cotric.
TEAMS
raiders: 1. Xavier Savage 2. Albert Hopoate 3. Matthew Timoko 4. Sebastian Kris 5. Jordan Rapana 6. Jack Wighton 7. Jamal Fogarty 8. Josh Papali’i 9. Zac Woolford 10. Emre Guler 11. Hudson Young 12. Elliott Whitehead 13. Adam Elliott 14. Tom Starling 15. Ryan Sutton 16. Corey Horsburgh 17. Corey Harawira-Naera. Replacement player: 18. James Schiller
Dragon’s: 21. Cody Ramsey 2. Mathew Feagai 1. Moses Mbye 4. Zac Lomax 5. Tautau Moga 6. Talatau Amone 7. Ben Hunt 8. Jack de Belin 9. Andrew McCullough 10. Blake Lawrie 11. Josh Mcguire 12. Jaydn Su ‘A 3. Jack Bird 13. Michael Molo 15. Aaron Woods 16. Tyrell Fuimaono 17. Billy Burns. Replacement player: 20. Jayden Hunt
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Cronulla Sharks star Nicho Hynes has been praised by NRL fans after delivering a moving speech in his post-game interview.
Hynes and the Sharks secured a 36-12 victory over the Wests Tigers, but Hynes’ mind was elsewhere.
The star halfback instead turned his focus towards Paul Green who’s death rocked the rugby league community this week.
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“Can I just give a quick shout out to Paul Green’s family. All of us here at the Sharks are thinking of you,” Hynes said on Fox.
“He was an important part of this club and I just want to pay my respects and condolences to you guys, we’re thinking of you.”
Hynes then went on to highlight the upcoming ‘RU OK’ day, but said more needs to be done towards mental health.
“There’s ‘RU OK’ day every year and it’s coming up soon but I think we need to have ‘RU OK’ day every single day of the year,” he said.
“We need to think about it a bit more and spread the message of mental health. It’s such an important thing at the moment.
“Once again our love to you guys.”
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Ten News journalist Veronica Eggleton wrote: “Class act.”
Without regular halves partner Matt Moylan or free-running fullback Will Kennedy, Hynes was the central fulcrum for all that was good about Cronulla’s attack. He ran 23 times for 205 meters (33m post-contact) and broke two tackles. As a playmaker he recorded one try assist and two linebreak assists. I have kicked 13 times for 291m.
– with Matt Cleary, NCA Newswire
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Cronulla Sharks star Nicho Hynes has been praised by NRL fans after delivering a moving speech in his post-game interview.
Hynes and the Sharks secured a 36-12 victory over the Wests Tigers, but Hynes’ mind was elsewhere.
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The star halfback instead turned his focus towards Paul Green who’s death rocked the rugby league community this week.
“Can I just give a quick shout out to Paul Green’s family. All of us here at the Sharks are thinking of you,” Hynes said on Fox.
“He was an important part of this club and I just want to pay my respects and condolences to you guys, we’re thinking of you.”
Hynes then went on to highlight the upcoming ‘RU OK’ day, but said more needs to be done towards mental health.
“There’s ‘RU OK’ day every year and it’s coming up soon but I think we need to have ‘RU OK’ day every single day of the year,” he said.
“We need to think about it a bit more and spread the message of mental health. It’s such an important thing at the moment.
“Once again our love to you guys.”
Ten News journalist Veronica Eggleton wrote: “Class act.”
Fox NRL journalist Darcie McDonald wrote: “All class, well said Nicho Hynes.”
Without regular halves partner Matt Moylan or free-running fullback Will Kennedy, Hynes was the central fulcrum for all that was good about Cronulla’s attack. He ran 23 times for 205 meters (33m post-contact) and broke two tackles. As a playmaker he recorded one try assist and two linebreak assists. I have kicked 13 times for 291m.
Knights coach Adam O’Brien has conceded that Sunday’s 14-10 win over the Tigers was a “relief for everyone” after what’s been a “tough” week for the club.
The Knights have been in the headlines for all the wrong reasons this week after star prop David Klemmer was stood down for over disciplinary matter.
Klemmer sprayed a trainer and refused to come off in the Knights’ Round 20 loss to the Bulldogs with the incident being elevated to HR.
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While being left out of the team for the Tigers clash, Klemmer was also handed a suspended fine.
The club copped criticism left, right and center in the lead-up to Sunday for its handling of a matter that happens often in the game.
Making matters worse, a report emerged earlier in the week alleging that a racist remark was made to a player by a staff member.
But the Knights put the horror week behind them and shot out a three-try lead on Sunday before surviving a comeback from the Tigers to seal the win.
Fox League analyst Michael Ennis said the squad looked “galvanised,” while Knights captain Jayden Brailey said after the game that the players used the turmoil as “a bit of motivation.”
“It was tough reading all the headlines and there was a lot of stuff that came out that we didn’t like and probably a lot of it wasn’t true,” he said.
“But I think in tough times you’ve got to stick together to pull yourself out of weeks like this.
“I think we probably did a really good job this week to block out the outside noise and use that as a bit of motivation to show who we really are… it was just a gritty performance tonight.”
O’Brien went through all the emotions in the coaches box during the game. The Knights shot out to a 14-nil lead at half time… but then the Tigers narrowed the scoreline to just four points to set up a grandstand finish.
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Asked if the win — which snapped a four-game losing streak — was a relief, O’Brien said: “Definitely a relief for everyone — players, staff, families.
“It was ugly but we don’t care, we got it done,” he added.
“It matters. Everyone is invested, it’s not just me, everyone from physios to players.
“It was a tough week, I’m really proud of the players, they rallied, we were really united and trained well. I’m really pleased for them.
“These boys, they certainly grabbed it.
“The leaders addressed some stuff — there was some stuff that needed to be addressed.
“There’s no doubt there’s been a lot of commentary on our club and how we run things. Some things are learnings for us and some things are completely inaccurate, but when you’re losing you open yourself up to that so I get it.
“We’ll take our medicine, we’ll look at the parts that we can control and do something about… and the rest we’ll forget.”
O’Brien also gave insight into his involvement in the incident.
“I just gave a statement in and around when it got to that level, which it has to escalate up,” he said.
“I just made a statement regarding it but I’ve been around footy long enough to know it’s pretty hard to get some guys off the field sometimes. I’ve been in that position, but it’s dealt with now.”
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He confirmed too that Klemmer will come straight back into the 17 for next week’s clash with the Broncos.
“Yep, it’s been dealt with,” O’Brien said when asked if Klemmer would return.
“There was a process it went through and sometimes when you go through a process you realize you can do it in a different way so you change it — so we’re better for going through that part.
“Big Klem accepted some accountability on some of his stuff, he has addressed the team and no doubt he’s dealt with now, he’s back in the team. He’s back at training now so I can pick him on Tuesday.”
The Knights have put their horror week behind them to escape with a 14-10 win over the Tigers, despite a second half fightback from the home side at Campbelltown Stadium.
A galvanized Knights outfit ran amok in the first half, shooting out a three-try lead thanks to a double to Enari Tuala and another to Tex Hoy.
But the Tigers came out of the half time break fired up and tried to Brent Naden and Asu Kepaoa set up a grandstand finish.
But the Knights were able to hang on and end their four-game losing streak… and finally move on from a dramatic week following the David Klemmer saga.
“It seems to have galvanized them, they’ve come with great energy,” Fox League analyst Michael Ennis said of the Knights’ attitude.
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61ST MINUTE
The momentum had well and truly swung in the Tigers’ favor after Asu Kepaoa scored to bring his side within four points of the Knights after being completely carved up in the first half.
52ND MINUTE
The Tigers finally got on the board through Brent Naden but it wouldn’t have been possible without Adam Doueihi’s boot. Doueihi put a giant bomb up that Dominic Young let bounce and Naden was there to snatch it and score. Doueihi converted to shorten the scoreline to 14-6.
30TH MINUTE
Star hooker Jayden Brailey took off before the Tigers’ markers were set and sent Tex Hoy over. Hoy converted to extend the Knights’ lead to 14-nil.
The easy try sparked Fox League’s Michael Ennis to take aim at the Tigers’ “turnstile” defense.
17TH MINUTE
Enari Tuala got his second of the day to extend his side’s lead with Jake Clifford and Bradman Best having a hand in the lead-up.
“Finally playing like Adam O’Brien has been telling us they’ve been training,” Fox League commentator Warren Smith said.
5TH MINUTE
Jake Clifford set up Enari Tuala for the first try of the afternoon with a long grubber kick for the winger to dive on.
“Terrific kick, set up perfectly,” Fox League commentator Warren Smith said.
MATCH PREVIEW
The Wests Tigers will chase back-to-back wins for just the second time this season when they take on the Knights at Campbelltown Stadium in the final game of Round 21.
The Knights got the bragging rights last time these two teams faced off but a lot has changed since then.
Both are languishing near the bottom of the table, but the Tigers are coming off an inspiring win over the Broncos last week, while the Knights have lost four consecutive games — and are coming off a dramatic few days for the club.
The Knights will be without David Klemmer after the star prop was stood down from selection due to disciplinary reasons in a storyline that has since blown up in the club’s face.
Jacob Saifiti takes Klemmer’s place in the starting pack, while star center Bradman Best makes a welcome return from a thumb injury.
For the Tigers, Jackson Hastings is out for the season, opening the door for young gun Fonua Pole to start at lock.
Filling Pole’s spot on the bench is 27-year-old debutant Tom Freebairn — captain of the Western Suburbs Magpies’ NSW Cup side.
A win for the Tigers will see them leapfrog the Knights on the ladder and move further away from the wooden spoon. But if the Knights get a much-needed win, they will jump to 13th, ahead of the Warriors.
TEAMS
Tigers: 1. Daine Laurie 2. Brent Naden 3. Starford To’a 4. Asu Kepaoa 5. Ken Maumalo 6. Adam Doueihi 7. Jock Madden 8. James Tamou 9. Fa’amanu Brown 10. Joe Ofahengaue 11. Alex Seyfarth 12 Kelma Tuilagi 13. Fonua Pole 14. Zane Musgrove 15. Austin Dias 16. Thomas Freebairn 17. Tyrone Peachey. Replacement player: 18. Junior Tupou
knights: 1. Tex Hoy 2. Enari Tuala 3. Dane Gagai 4. Bradman Best 5. Dominic Young 6. Anthony Milford 7. Jake Clifford 8. Jacob Saifiti 9. Jayden Brailey 10. Daniel Saifiti 11. Tyson Frizell 12. Brodie Jones 13 Mitchell Barnett 14. Phoenix Crossland 15. Simi Sasagi 16. Pasami Saulo 17. Mathew Croker. Replacement player: 18. Jack Johns
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Plenty is on the line when the Roosters host the Broncos at the SCG on Thursday night with the former hoping to hang onto the top eight and the latter looking to keep in touch with the top four.
The Roosters sit eighth after three consecutive wins but a loss to the Broncos could see them drop out of the eight if the Raiders beat a depleted Panthers outfit on Saturday.
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On the other side of the coin, the Broncos look set to return to finals footy and have their eyes on a top four finish — but a shock loss to the Tigers last week has seen them drop to fifth.
Both coaches have been forced into making key changes to their side with Roosters duo Lindsay Collins (concussion) and Egan Butcher (suspension) out as well as Broncos star Patrick Carrigan, who copped a four-week ban for a hip-drop tackle.
Trent Robinson has promoted Matt Lodge to the starting side and brought Terrell May and Ben Thomas onto the bench.
Meanwhile, Kevin Walters has replaced Carrigan with Kobe Hetherington and Rhys Kennedy joins the bench.
In other key changes for the Broncos, Origin star Selwyn Cobbo returns on the wing from the concussion he suffered in game three, while Jake Turpin is back in the 17 at the expense of Cory Paix and will start at hooker with Billy Walters dropping back to the bench.
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TEAMS
Roosters: 1. James Tedesco 2. Daniel Tupou 3. Paul Momirovski 4. Joseph Manu 5. Joseph Suaalii 6. Luke Keary 7. Sam Walker 8. Jared Waerea-Hargreaves 9. Sam Verrills 10. Matthew Lodge 11. Angus Crichton 12. Nat Butcher 13. Victor Radley 14. Connor Watson 15. Ben Thomas 16. Drew Hutchison 17. Terrell May. Replacement player: 19. Fletcher Baker
Broncos: 1. Tesi Niu 2. Corey Oates 3. Kotoni Staggs 4. Deine Mariner 5. Selwyn Cobbo 6. Ezra Mam 7. Adam Reynolds 8. Thomas Flegler 14. Jake Turpin 10. Payne Haas 11. Kurt Capewell 12. Jordan Riki 13. Kobe Hetherington 9. Billy Walters 15. Rhys Kennedy 16. Corey Jensen 17. Keenan Palasia. Replacement player: 18. Te Maire Martin
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Roosters star Luke Keary has opened up on his concussion battles, how he’s dealt with the setbacks and why it can be one of the more frustrating injuries.
He has also revealed that teammate Lindsay Collins will take a break from the game after suffering a head knock against Manly — his second in as many weeks.
Keary suffered a head knock in the Roosters’ Round 14 loss to the Storm and was sidelined for four weeks before starring in his return game against the Knights.
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The 30-year-old has a well-documented history with concussion. He suffered four in the space of 14 months between January 2018 and May 2019 — with the last one during that period forcing him into an extended break from the game.
When he suffered his latest knock, many in the game feared for his long-term future. But Keary had the advice of those who know best to guide him through a tricky period.
Speaking for the first time since that head knock, Keary told the Fox League Podcast that he was “a little bit nervous” to return in Round 19.
But shared that “compartmentalizing” and listening to medical advice is what helped him get back onto the field.
“I think the way you deal with it initially and the big one is the medical advice you get. I found the top neurologist in the country giving you advice — they’re the ones you should listen to,” he said.
“There’s a lot of people who are going to have an opinion about it, which is fair enough, but if you can just listen to them (neurologist), they’re not going to put you at risk. They’re not going to let you get back out there if they think there’s a risk to your long-term future.
“If you can kind of compartmentalize everything and take the right people’s advice it makes you a little less nervous to come back.
“But it’s always a tough one to come back from… you don’t want to get them as a player and you don’t want to see other players get them.”
Keary also gave a rare insight into what the recovery period actually looks like for players — and why it’s different for everyone.
“I’ve had ones where I’ve had symptoms and with those you can’t do anything, you’ve just got to rest and wait for the symptoms to go, the NRL has a return to play policy which you follow and it’s a pretty safe way to get back into contact and games,” he said.
“Then there’s others… In 2019 I had a few in a row and I had a forced six-week lay-off. I was actually fine, I didn’t have any symptoms, but the doctors thought it was the best thing to have a month off.
“I was fine the whole time, I had a couple of weeks off then I trained with the boys for three or four weeks. I think they’re all different depending on symptoms.”
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It’s those types of concussions where there’s no symptoms that Keary admitted are “definitely” frustrating because his body may have felt fine but he had to put his long-term health first.
“Obviously with other injuries you just know straight away, whatever it is there’s sort of a set time limit. Head (injuries) are very different,” he said.
“Every single player is different. Some players take an hour to recover, some take weeks, some take months.
“The neurologist will tell you too, I think it’s the brain patterns don’t go back to normal for a few weeks so I think in society and even in medical they admit don’t have all the information they need at the moment.
“But I’m pretty experienced with them so I can tell you they’re very cautious and they don’t take footy into consideration — they take into consideration your health.
“As a game we’re doing as good a job as we can to protect the players and put in the best measures and protocols we know at the moment which are going to help.
“It’s never going to be perfect because as I said even the top docs will admit they just don’t have enough information yet.”
Between Keary’s history and the early retirements of Boyd Cordner and Jake Friend last season, the Roosters are well-equipped for concussion challenges.
They’ll take their time with Collins, who suffered a head knock in Origin III and then another against Manly last Thursday.
Keary revealed Collins, who is “in good spirits,” will take a break but is hopeful of returning before the end of the season.
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“It was real unfortunate,” Keary said of Collins’ concussion.
“Obviously the Origin one and then first game back, that wasn’t a pretty sight. But he was in really good spirits.
“It’s funny, everyone’s different and some knocks you’re rattled by, they make you sick and then others you’re fine five minutes late.
“Linds was in real good spirits after the game, he’s been at training every day — he wanted to train with us yesterday but the doctors wouldn’t let him.
“He’s obviously going to have some time off, get himself right, make sure his head and neck are right, make sure everything is OK, go see some independent doctors and take the time he needs to come back, make sure he’s healthy and strong and to make sure he’s OK to play.
“Hopefully we get him back before the end of the season, but if not, we all just want Linds to get healthy again.”
Oliver Gildart, who will finish the season at the Roosters, was handed a big challenge — playing in the halves for the first time in his career after a 20-minute crash-course — and remarkably he didn’t look out of place at all .
Meanwhile, a gun fullback could help solve some of the Storm’s injury woes and there’s a 194cm, 95kg beast with footwork to boot that is yet to be picked up by an NRL club.
Read on for the latest Reserve Grade Wrap.
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ALL EYES WERE ON…
Oliver Gildart lined up at five-eighth for the Magpies on Saturday and although they were defeated 36-24 by Mounties, he proved his worth as a versatile backline player, before sealing a loan move to the Roosters this week.
Gildart is primarily a center but has had a taste of fullback in the New South Wales Cup and now the halves.
The 25-year-old proved to be one of the Magpies’ most important players and his willingness to take on the line saw him set up two tries, get a linebreak, a linebreak assist, four tackle busts and 158 running meters.
Gildart told Fox League the last time he played in the halves was when he was 11-years old so he got a quick refresher in Friday’s captain’s run.
”I got a 20-minute session yesterday at captain’s run so I was a bit clunky but you get your hands a lot more on the ball so I enjoyed that side of the game… I’ve got a lot to learn in this position that’s for sure,” he said.
Parramatta’s Nathan Brown continues to put pressure on coach Brad Arthur with another standout performance in reserve grade. The 29-year-old NRL veteran set up a try, got a linebreak assist, two tackle busts and ran for 206 metres. He also made 32 tackles with two misses in the Eels’ one-point loss to the Panthers.
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TRANSFER WHISPERS: Eels’ desperate call to land Manly star; Roosters’ rake switch
STANDOUTS
Dane Aukafolau’s performance would have caught the attention of NRL clubs in Mounties’ win over the Magpies.
At 194cm and 95kg, he cuts an imposing figure while playing in the second row but after a history in the centres, Aukafolau has the footwork to catch his opposition off guard.
Aukafolau stunned with a try, a try assist, a linebreak, two linebreak assists and seven tackle busts as well as 17 tackles with two misses.
Mounties are made up of majority part-time players like Aukafolau and he couldn’t be proud of their efforts this season.
“Being one of the senior players I needed to step up so I just try and do what I can,” he told Fox League.
“These boys, day-in, day-out, their efforts are unreal. It’s good to see part-time footballers bringing that contest up to the level of these (full time) guys. It shows a lot.”
Still on Mountains, Tim Simona wound back the clock to show he still has what it takes to play first grade.
Simona scored a double, got four linebreaks, three tackle busts and 169 running meters in the centres.
Penrith escaped with a one-point win in which the craftiness of hooker Soni Luke was on show. The 26-year-old, who got an NRL debut earlier this season, scored a try, set up two more, got a linebreak, four linebreak assists, six tackle busts and 112 running meters.
A couple of Panthers forwards were equally impressive and dominated on both sides of the ball.
The soon-to-be Eel J’maine Hopgood showed his future club what they can look forward to, with a try, two linebreaks, nine tackle busts, four offloads and 214 running meters, while also making 41 tackles with just two misses.
Meanwhile, the highly-regarded Lindsay Smith finished with 227 running meters, five tackle busts and 38 tackles with two misses.
There wasn’t a lot to smile about for Dragons fans over the weekend, but their reserve grade side bagged an important 30-18 win over the Raiders to keep their final hopes alive.
Michael Molo starred in the win, notching up a try assist, a linebreak assist, three tackle busts and 167 meters while also making 34 tackles with just one miss. Meanwhile, jackson ford finished with 141 running meters and a season-high 10 tackle busts.
Competition leaders, Newtown, seem to be getting better and better each week and with a fairly simple run home they are the favorites to claim the minor premiership.
half-back Braydon Trindall starred in their 42-18 win over the Rabbitohs on Saturday, having a hand in FIVE tries (one try and four assists). He also got four linebreak assists, three tackle busts and ran for 82 metres. Trindall also had a perfect day on the boot, slotting seven goals from seven attempts but on the flip side, he did miss five tackles.
Mawene Hiroti had a day out in the centres, scoring a try, setting up two more and getting two linebreaks, a linebreak assist and five tackle busts to go with his 185 running metres.
There were some good performers for the Bunnies though with five-eighth Jack Campagnolo, who guided Wynnum Manly to the Queensland Cup grand final last year, setting up two tries, as well as getting a linebreak assist and five tackle busts. And workhorse lock james hasson notched up 128 running meters and made 23 tackles with zero misses — he was the only Rabbitoh to not miss a tackle.
UNDER THE SPOTLIGHT
The Storm’s Nick Meaney has been cleared of a serious shoulder injury but has to pass concussion protocols to play in Friday’s Titans clash.
Craig Bellamy has already conceded his backline stocks are running very low, but a fullback at one of the Storm’s Queensland Cup feeder sides has put his hand up over recent weeks to come into consideration.
Brisbane Tigers’ Tony Pellow stunned in their 32-18 win over Ipswich with two try assists, two linebreak assists and 221 running metres.
It was only two weeks ago that 25-year-old Pellow came up with a clutch play in the final four minutes to steal his side a four-point win over Souths Logan. Pellow received the ball from a scrum 10 meters out from his own line, found a gap, palmed off a Magpie, ran 70 meters and then put a cross-field grubber in for Jayden Nikorima to score.
Pellow, a St Johns Dubbo junior, joined the Tigers this season from the Dragons and spent eight weeks training with the Storm during pre-season.
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SPOTTED
Out-of-favor Wests Tigers hooker JJacob Liddle played lock for the Magpies over the weekend. Coach Wayne Lambkin had limited options and had to pick a couple of players out of position to fill gaps. Liddle, who is reportedly set to sign with the Dragons, finished with 93 running meters, two tackle busts and 35 tackles, but had six misses.
rising star Kade Dykes didn’t feature in Newtown’s big win because he was 18th man for NRL. With Will Kennedy out for the next six weeks, it’s assumed Locky Miller will step into the No.1 jersey but don’t be surprised to see Dykes get his NRL debut at fullback. Coach Craig Fitzgibbon will have a headache of the good kind when deciding who fills in for Kennedy.
The Tigers will be without Jackson Hastings for the rest of the season after he suffered an ugly leg break against the Broncos.
Hastings had his leg caught under him in an ugly tackle that saw Broncos forward Patrick Carrigan placed on report for a hip drop tackle.
Scans confirmed a broken leg for Hastings who will undergo surgery that rules him out for an extended period.
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Meanwhile, the Eels have copped a massive blow in their hunt for the top four with star halfback Mitchell Moses reportedly suffering a broken finger.
Brent Read told Triple M that Moses will be ruled out for at least a month after suffering in the injury in last night’s win over the Panthers. Moses appeared to injure his finger at him in the 31st minute, and had it strapped by a physio shortly afterwards, but managed to finish the match.
Moses will reportedly undergo surgery and could miss the remainder of the regular season.
COWBOYS LOSE FLYER TO HAMSTRING INJURY
The Cowboys will be sweating on a hamstring injury to winger Kyle Feldt after he limped off in their 34-8 win over the Dragons.
STORM FULLBACK CRISIS WORSENS
Meanwhile, the Storm’s outside back injury crisis has worsened with replacement fullback Nick Meaney going off against the Warriors with a shoulder injury.
Meaney fell on the point of his shoulder from a great height after he was taken out in the air by Warriors winger Dallin Watene-Zelezniak.
“He fell awkwardly and I wouldn’t be surprised if he has quite a significant AC joint injury the way that shoulder came down right on the point,” Warren Smith said on Fox League.
“Melbourne in all sorts of problems here. They were chasing Reece Walsh to be a fullback.
“Tyran Wishart will come on and play fullback now after they already lost Ryan Papenhuyzen for the season.”
Coach Craig Bellamy was hopeful after the game that it wasn’t a serious injury and revealed there are some positive signs.
“He’s done something to his right shoulder but I don’t think we’re quite sure of what he’s done,” he said.
“It looked pretty dire when he came off, he obviously had the sling on. But it’s looking a bit better at the moment, they don’t think it’s quite as bad as what they thought it was at the start.”
In the same game, Warriors five-eighth Chanel Harris-Tavita succumbed to a leg injury in the first half and left the field.
“We’re thinking it’s an MCL… he’ll have scans to see the extent of the injury. But our medical officer said it’s an MCL injury,” interim coach Stacey Jones said after the game.
ROOSTERS STAR SUFFERS UGLY CONCUSSION
Roosters prop Lindsay Collins has suffered a nasty head knock, colliding with the head of Morgan Boyle.
Collins bounced out of the tackle, knocking himself unconscious before leaving the field with the assistance of the club doctor and trainer.
The 26-year-old was one of three players who left the field in the first four minutes of the Origin decider and was playing his first game since the blow, spending two weeks sidelined due to ongoing concussion symptoms.
“I fear for Lindsay here, he went straight down… he has copped both head and shoulder, that is incredibly heavy on Lindsay Collins,” Andrew Voss said.
“You could see the contact,” Greg Alexander said.
“That is worrying for a player that is only returning this round because of concussion.”
Fox League’s James Hooper confirmed Collins would not return to the field in Round 20.
“Category 1 concussion, his night is over,” Fox League’s James Hooper said.
PANTHERS’ INJURY UPDATE
The Panthers have copped a significant blow with star five-eighth Jarome Luai expected to be sidelined for up to six weeks.
The club confirmed the timeline on Thursday and revealed that Luai had suffered a high grade MCL injury.
Penrith also revealed that Mitch Kenny (knee) and Stephen Crichton (ear/concussion) could return next week.
TIGERS’ BIG BLOW
Luke Brooks will miss Round 20 and likely the rest of the season after suffering a calf injury at training.
The Wests Tigers confirmed on Thursday that Brooks will be out for five to six weeks with Jock Madden the man expected to replace him in the halves.
The Tigers also revealed Luke Garner is a good chance of returning from a neck injury in Round 21, Stefano Utoikamanu has commended a running program after undergoing wrist surgery and Tommy Talau will return to full team training over the next month.
Read on for the full NRL casualty ward.
ROUND 20 INJURIES
Lindsay Collins (head knock) – TBC
Nick Meaney (shoulder) – TBC
Chanel Harris-Tavita (knee) – TBC
Mitchell Moses (finger) – Finals
Adam Elliott (hip) – TBC
Jackson Hastings (leg) – season
Kyle Feldt (hamstring) – TBC
FULL CASUALTY WARD
BRONCOS
Selwyn Cobbo (concussion) – Round 21
Albert Kelly (foot) – Round 21
TC Robati (arm) – Round 21
Te Maire Martin (ribs) – indefinite
Herbie Farnworth (biceps) – indefinite
Jordan Pereira (illness) – indefinite
raiders
Adam Elliott (hip) – TBC
James Schiller (ankle) – Round 21
Jordan Rapana (suspended) – Round 21
Semi Valemei (knee) – Round 21
Harry Rushton (jaw) – Round 25
Trey Mooney (ankle) – indefinite
Jarrod Croker (shoulder) – season
Josh Hodgson (knee) – season
Harley Smith-Shields (knee) – season
BULLDOGS
Paul Alamoti (cheekbone) – Round 21
Corey Allan (groin) – Round 22
Ava Seumanufagai (calf) – Round 22
Corey Waddell (suspension) – Round 25
Luke Thompson (concussion) – indefinite
Jack Hetherington (shoulder) – season
Billy Tsikrikas (knee) – season
Raymond Faitala-Mariner (ribs) – Round 21
SHARKS
Dale Finucane (suspension) – Round 22
Royce Hunt (shoulder) – indefinite
Jack Williams (shoulder) – season
Sione Katoa (pectoral) – season
TITANS
Joe Vuna (knee) – indefinite
Shallin Fuller (leg) – season
BE EAGLES
Sean Keppie (shoulder) – Round 21
Ben Trbojevic (head knock) – TBC
Tom Trbojevic (shoulder) – finals/World Cup
Karl Lawton (knee) – season
Morgan Boyle (ankle) – indefinite
STORM
Nick Meaney (shoulder) – TBC
Jack Howarth (shoulder) – Round 21
Will Warbrick (quad) – Round 21
Tepai Moeroa (shoulder) – Round 21
Brandon Smith (suspended) – Round 21
Xavier Coates (ankle) – Round 22
Trent Loiero (back) – indefinite
Ryan Papenhuyzen (knee) – season
Reimis Smith (pectoral) – season
Christian Welch (Achilles) – season
George Jennings (knee) – season
KNIGHTS
Kalyn Ponga (concussion) – indefinite
Kurt Mann (quad) – Round 21
Bradman Best (thumb) – Round 22
Lachlan Fitzgibbon (shoulder) – indefinite
Chris Vea’ila (leg) – indefinite
Bailey Hodgson (elbow) – season
Dylan Lucas (pectoral) – season
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COWBOYS
Kyle Feldt (hamstring) – TBC
Jordan McLean (hamstring) – Round 24
Mitch Dunn (knee) – season
Heilum Luki (knee) – season
EELS
Haze Dunster (knee) – season
Ray Stone (knee) – season
Mitch Moses (finger) – Finals
PANTHERS
Eddie Blacker (hamstring) – Round 21
Mitch Kenny (knee) – Round 21-22
Stephen Crichton (ear/concussion) – Round 21
Kurt Falls (leg) – Round 21
Mavrik Geyer (thumb) – Round 21
Jarome Luai (knee) – Round 25-finals
Nathan Cleary (suspension) – Finals
RABBITOHS
Peter Mamouzelos (wrist) – Round 24
Hame Sele (hamstring) – Round 25
Michael Chee Kam (thumb) – Round 25
Campbell Graham (cheekbone) – indefinite
Liam Knight (knee) – season
Jacob Host (shoulder) – season
Jed Cartwright (hamstring) – TBC
Taane Milne (hand) – Round 21
dragons
Cody Ramsey (knee) – Round 22
Jayden Sullivan (shoulder) – Round 23
Mikaele Ravalawa (hamstring) – Finals
Moses Suli (ankle) – Finals
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