NRL Scores – Eels Win Eliminates Sea Eagles

September 13, 2009

The Parramatta Eels have kept their 2009 NRL finals campaign alive at the expense of the 2008 premiership winning team, Manly Sea Eagles. This comes following their impressive 25-12 win over the minor premiers, St George Illawarra.

I managed to pick four from four the the weekend although the margins of the win by Melbourne was a bit more than I tipped in my NRL finals week one preview.

The other NRL scores from the weekend resulted in Melbourne Storm and the Canterbury Bulldogs earning the week off for week two in the finals series. Next week on Friday night the Parramatta Eels take on the Gold Coast Titans at the Sydney Football Stadium and the Brisbane Broncos host the St Georg Illawarra Dragons in a Saturday night match.

In yesterday’s match between the Eels and Dragons it was solid defence in the opening 20 minutes that laid the platform for an Eels win. In front of a packed Jubilee Oval crowd the Dragons were fired up and looking for a repeat of the 37-0 win the week before. After the Eels repelled attack after attack all that the Dragons could get out of it was a penalty goal.

This period gave the Eels confidence and from that moment they stunned the Dragons by putting on two tries in five minutes. Luke Burt scored after 26 minutes and then Daniel Mortimer crossed after 30 minutes. Both tries were comverted to give the Eels a 12-2 lead. The Dragons hit back just before halftime as Dan Hunt scored in the 36th minute.

With the Dragons getting desperate to cut the lead they were pushing passes close to the Eels’ line. Eric Grothe took advantage of this and grabbed a key intercept which he ran in for a try after 61 minutes of play. “I didn’t think about it – it was there and I grabbed it,” Grothe said after the match.

A Brett Morris try for the Dragons in the 70th minute gave the Dragons a slight chance of mounting a challenge but then that was snuffed out by the Dally M winner, Jarryd Hayne when he tip toed past seven defenders and the referee to put the game beyond reach.

The Eels would have to be favoured going into their match with the Titans as the team from the Gold Coast don’t seem to travel well however you never know in finals football.

The final NRL scores from week one of the 2009 finals series are:
Melbourne Storm 40-12 Manly Sea Eagles
Gold Coast Titans 32-40 Brisbane Broncos
Bulldogs 26-12 Newcastle Knights
St George Illawarra Dragons 12-25 Parramatta Eels

NRL Scores – Bulldogs Advance

September 12, 2009

The Bulldogs were too good for the Newcastle Knights in the third of the NRL finals matches played so far this weekend. They eliminated the Knights with a 26-12 win at ANZ Stadium in Sydney.

The Knights were first to score when Junior Sau crossed at 15 minutes. Tries to Josh Morris (23m) and a double for Luke Patten (33m, 39m) saw the Bulldogs out to a handy 18-6 halftime lead. A Scott Dureau try for Newcastle after 53 minutes gave them a sniff of a win before a late Ben Hannant try in the 73rd minute sealed the win.

Playing without key play maker Brett Kimmorley the Bulldogs struggled, however they still did get the job done. As a result they get next week to rest while they await the results of matches in week two to see who they will play for a spot in the grand final.

The Bulldogs of course are looking to go from wooden spooners in 2008 to premiers in 2009.

Just to recap the NRL scores so far we saw Melbourne defeat the Sea Eagles 40-12 and Brisbane defeated the Titans 40-32. The final match of the weekend will see the Eels take on the Dragons. A win for the Eels will see the Sea Eagles drop out of the finals race.

NRL Finals – Mistakes Prove Costly for Titans

September 12, 2009

The Gold Coast Titans were hoping to put on a good show in the club’s first ever finals appearance. With a sellout crown behind them at Skilled Park they got off to a good start as Preston Campbell scored after seven minutes. From there they let things slip. Several costly mistakes helped the Broncos on their way to a 40-32 win.

Two tries to Brisbane in the 10th minute (Andrew McCullough) and 16th minutes (Israel Folau)  saw them take the lead. The Titans narrowed the margin after David Mead went over out wide thanks to some quick hands from Chris Walker. Mead went from hero to villain a few minutes later when he dropped a high ball which resulted in Folau scoring his second try.

Now the Broncos bolted out to a 20 point lead before the Titans made a stunning comeback. After tries to Kevin Gordon (49 and 60 minutes), Brad Meyers (54 minutes) and David Mead (72 minutes) the Titans had got the score to within two points. Another mistake saw the Broncos edge away when Luke Bailey threw an intercept pass which Dave Taylor returned for the crucial try.

It was an exciting game but some sloppy handling and the mistakes mentioned above cost the Titans the match.

NRL – Billy and Storm Blasts Manly

September 11, 2009

The 2008 NRL premiers face an anxious wait to see if they stay in the 2009 finals race. This comes after they were thumped by a committed Melbourne Storm outfit. Billy Slater lead the way with four tries as Melbourne took the match 40-8.

Melbourne were ahead 16-0 at the half-time break and pushed that lead out to 34-0 before Manly got on the board with a Steve Matai try. Melbourne fans booed the try as they were looking for a 40-0 scoreline to match that of the grand final in 2008. For the players it was not so much about revenge but moving on towards another grand final.

To go with Slater’s four tries Nielsen, Smith and Tolman also scored. For Manly Foran added a try to the earlier one by Matai.

The crowd was perhaps a bit disappointing as only 21,155 turned out for the match at Etihad Stadium in Melbourne.

If teams below Manly can win this weekend the finals campaign for the Sea Eagles could be over.

Rugby League – NRL Finals Week One Preview

September 11, 2009

After an entertaining NRL home and away season it has now come to finals time. The big movers of the year were the Bulldogs who last year took out the wooden spoon and in 2009 they were second. Moving in the other direction were the Sharks and Roosters. The Sharks fell from third in 2008 to second last, while the Roosters took the wooden spoon.

Looking ahead at the match ups in the first week of the NRL finals we see a replay of last years grand final to be played on Friday night. The Melbourne Storm hosts the Sea Eagles. Manly after a slow start have found some good form over recent times. Melbourne has been steady without being spectacular so this is a hard match to pick a winner. As Melbourne are at home I give them the edge. Melbourne by 8 is my pick.

On Saturday night at 6.30pm the two south Queensland teams face off for bragging rights. The Broncos looked gone a short time ago but have found form in the closing weeks of the season while the Gold Coast Titans have done well to make their first ever finals campaign. The Broncos have experience on their side and I am tipping them to take this match.

Also on Saturday night we see the Bulldogs take on the Newcastle Knights. The Knights just snuck into the finals after defeating Penrith in what was effectively a playoff last week. The Bulldogs almost went from last to first  as they just missed the minor premiership on for and against. In this game I think the Bulldogs will be just too good for the Knights. Bulldogs by 18.

The final match of the opening round of the NRL playoffs sees the Dragons play the Eels. Just last week they met and the Dragons trounced the Eels. With their season on the line I think the Eels can turn that result around and defeat the minor premiers. Eels by 4.

No Stopping Hayne and the Slippery Eels

August 28, 2009

The Parramatta Eels would have some of the top sides worried about a first round meeting in the NRL playoffs. They continued their dazzling charge to the finals wrapping up their seventh straight win with a emphatic 48-6 win over the Penrith Panthers.

Once again Jarryd Hayne thrilled the vocal home crowd with his superb play. Not to be outdone Daniel Mortimer scored a hat trick of tries and Luke Burt scored 24 points from two tries and eight goals.

The best example of Hayne’s brilliance came with 15 minutes to play. He made a break thanks to some great acceleration and footwork and found himself with players closing in on him. He had Mortimer in support however a Penrith player was between him and Hayne. Just to show his class Hayne floated a pass over the defender perfectly into the arms of Mortimer and away he went.

To see such a pass is rare, especially when running at full speed. Hayne is in a rare patch of form. Can he continue to blitz opposition teams and take the Eels all the way to the NRL grand final? That is the question NRL fans are asking.

After the win the Eels jumped into 6th spot on the NRL ladder. Manly should complete a win over the Sharks to jump over them while the Knights have a testing match against the Raider in Canberra.

It all comes down to the final round where the Eels will take on the Dragons. This will be a true test for the Eels. Other key matchups see the Wests Tigers v Bulldogs, Sea Eagles v Titans, and the Knights v Panthers.

Exciting times ahead in the NRL

To update the NRL scores for Friday the Brisbane Broncos continued there form reversal with a 16-10 win over the Cowboys.  After looking like they might miss the finals a few weeks back the Broncos now find themselves in fourth on the ladder.

Inglis in the clear after girlfriend changes statement?

August 14, 2009

According to a story on the smh.com.au site Australian rugby league superstar, Greg Inglis may be cleared of the charge of intentionally causing injury and unlawful assault.

This comes as a result of his girlfriend Sally Robinson submitting a fresh statement regarding the events when the alleged incident took place.

You can read the full article here “Girlfriend puts new slant on Inglis row

Another Blow for NRL as Inglis Arrested for Alleged Assault

August 10, 2009

Earlier this season the National Rugby League had to edit their new television ad to remove Manly’s Brett Stewart after he was charged with sexual assault. After that Greg Inglis became the main focus of the campaign. Now to make matters worse it has been reported that Inglis has been arrested over the alleged assault of his girlfriend.

The Herald Sun reported that Inglis’ girlfriend now has a black eye however the police would not confirm the nature of the alleged injuries or when and where the alleged incident took place.

Inglis has secured bail and was ordered to appear in court on Wednesday.

What did you think when you saw this news? Do you think the NRL has an image problem? Love to see your comments.

State of Origin Game 3 goes to NSW

July 15, 2009

In game two of the State of Origin series it was David Williams who had a shocker as Queensland completed a historic fourth consecutive series win.

Game three was played Wednesday night on the Queensland home ground in Brisbane. Early in the match it was again Williams who handed the ball to Queensland to allow them to score. This time as he tried to slide and collect the ball he fumbled and allowed Dallas Johnson to cross the line. After the video ref reviewed the play several times he gave benefit of the doubt to Queensland.

Unlike other matches the NSW Blues team hit back and then ended the first half in front of their opponents.

A try was scored by Ben Creagh after Watmough delivered a sweet pass to make it 6-6 after 18 minutes. The next was controversial as Williams scored a try and a penalty was awarded to allow NSW to collect eight points.

The try itself was doubtful as the Manly winger appeared to lose the ball as he tried to ground it. The play started with a kick cross-field, Billy Slater could not wrap up the ball. Instead he put it in the hands of Williams who then got the ball to ground. As he did Thurston lashed out with his foot. The play was penalised.

The defence from NSW was a lot more committed and they had the match under control after going to the sheds with an eight point lead.

Queensland hit back just after halftime with a try to Justin Hodges but then mistakes followed from Queensland allowed NSW to score again after Trent Barrett delivered a nice pass to Josh Morris for the Blues to extend their lead.

Queensland were not giving up that easily and they put on a sensational try to Billy Slater. It came after Greg Inglis streaked away down the left sideline. He then put a kick through which Billy Slater chased at full speed before grounding the ball just inside the dead ball line. Once again it took the video ref to review the play before giving it the benefit of the doubt try.

Once again showing more spirit than they had in games one and two, the Blues scored again through Ben Creagh to make it 26-16 after the conversion.

With 11 minutes left to play Inglis put on a big fend against David Williams and looked like he might streak away for a try but Kimmorley had other ideas and he made a great covering tackle around the ankles.

Late in the game Trent Waterhouse was sent from the field after coming in late and hitting Steve Price. There had already been a fight between Price and a Blues player. The end result saw Price leave on a stretcher. Hopefully he is ok.

You might have thought that was the end of the action, but no. As the fight involving Price took place Jarrad Hayne went over for a possible try. Thanks to the fight it was disallowed.

Just minutes later there was more push and shove and we saw Ben Creagh and Sam Thaiday sent to the sin bin.

Finally the end came and NSW avoided the whitewash with a 28-16 win.

Brett Kimmorley justified his recall as he put in a great performance. He last played Origin in 2007. Anthony Watmough also had a great game for NSW.

Rugby League State of Origin Queensland team game 3

July 15, 2009

Tonight Queensland will be looking to really run New South Wales’ noses into it. Not only have they won four straight series the Maroons want to humiliate NSW and make them scared for next year.

The Queensland team for Rugby League State of Origin game three is:

1. Billy Slater
2. Darius Boyd
3. Greg Inglis
4. Justin Hodges
5. Willie Tonga
6. Darren Lockyer (c)
7. Johnathan Thurston
8. Steve Price
9. Cameron Smith
10. Matt Scott
11. Ashley Harrison
12. Sam Thaiday
13. Dallas Johnson

Interchange
14. Karmichael Hunt
15. David Shillington
16. Neville Costingan
17. Michael Crocker

Nate Myles is of course missing from the team following his suspension for the Central Coast hotel incident. Justin Hodges returns to the side after missing game two due to an injury he picked up in game 1.

Do you think NSW can avoid the series whitewash? See the NSW game 3 team list.

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