ROUND 16 WRAP: How Origin affected the games leading teams
Despite being a master-class game that everybody loves to watch, Origin sometimes has damaging side-effects on the games leading teams, who are often left with three or four players who must back up in a short time.
But without Origin, we wouldn't be able to witness first class football between each states best, and learn which state produces the best footballers.
A Friday night thriller down at Pepper Stadium between the Panthers and the Rabbitohs gifted Penrith with a 2 point win and their seventh for the season, pushing them to 8th on the ladder. A game that easily could have swung either way, was dominated by Penrith's young guns, with versatile halfback/second rower Bryce Cartwright setting up three trys for his team, clinching the win. Backing up from Origin, Matt Moylan and Josh Mansour combined brilliantly to put the nail in the Bunnies coffin, and for their hopes at making the finals. And while Greg Inglis might have shown that he is not out of form, as some may think, it wasn't enough to get his team over the line.
Saturday afternoon was an acrobatic and athletic display at Hunter Stadium between the desperate Knights and the in form Dragons. By the 30th minute, it was game, set, match, with the Dragons taking a 14 point lead over a side struggling to find their feet. But a beautiful acrobatic display by Knights winger, Nathan Ross reassured fans that while finals hopes are certainly out of the picture, their players were as athletic as ever, boosting the overall atmosphere of the game. However, none of this could stop the Dragons attack, led by halfback Benji Marshall and returning fullback Josh Dugan. Back-to-back wins for the Dragons puts them in a good position to make the eight coming into the back end of the season.
Shark Park was alight for the twilight Saturday game as Cronulla aimed to make it 11 straight wins and the Warriors looked to make an impression on the games top side. This was most certainly my game of the round, with the Sharks taking a one point win in a game that had a bit of everything. Wade Graham returned from suspension, as well as James Maloney, Andrew Fafita, Jack Bird and Paul Gallen all back from their Origin duties, which helped push their team over the line. While James Maloney sealed the victory in golden point, the Warriors definitely didn't disappoint. Bodene Thompson made an impressive 47 tackles, while halfback Shaun Johnson worked his magic to create confusion for the Cronulla defence.
As my parents always said, if you haven't got anything nice to say, don't say it at all. This is how I feel about the Bulldogs and Broncos game on Saturday night, with Canterbury taking a 40-14 win. The Bulldogs were terrorising against a Broncos team without Jordan Kahu, Alex Glenn and Sam Thaiday, as well as their under-performing Origin stars, who had just three days to refresh themselves. And while the Broncos might not have played wonderful football, the Bulldogs certainly capitalised on all of their opportunities. It is true what they say, the Dogs definitely have the biggest forward pack in the game, with prop Aiden Toleman playing the full 80 minutes with 27 runs, 230 meters and an impressive 41 tackles. While their forwards do most of the grunt work, returning back Brett Morris scored a fantastic hat trick in his first game for this season. Although the Broncos lost, I don't think they are down and out for the season, just facing the post origin blues.
The early Sunday game down at Cbus Super Stadium had the Titans and Raiders going head to head for a spot in the top 8. Both teams were certainly fired up and ready to play, with all the stats favouring the home side for a win. Titans forward Ryan James put in another impressive effort making 37 tackles, in a back and forward game. While the Titans gave it to the Raiders, Jarrod Croker led his side, scoring two tries and converting four of the five trys scored. The Titans have definitely been the underdogs of this season, only two points shy of making the eight.
A cold Sunday afternoon game at AAMI Park between Melbourne and the West Tigers was a game of two halves. The first 40 of the game was all the Storm, taking a 26 point lead and an incredible length of the field try for winger Marika Koroibete, who clocked up a total of 285 meters for the game. The Storm's strong defence and decisive attack was lead by returning origin stars Cameron Smith and Cooper Cronk, who reached an impressive milestone, with 200 NRL wins. Not even big hits by the powering Storm forward pack could hold off a Tigers come back, with James Tedesco's fancy footwork putting him over the line, showing Blues selectors why he should be chosen for Origin III. However, the Storm were too good for the young Tigers side, taking a 29-20 win at home.
The lucky last game for the round, between the Cowboys and Sea Eagles at 1300 Smiles. This was one that I thought the Cowboys would win easily, having not lost a game at home all season and having a stellar record against Manly. But I was proven wrong by the Sea Eagles, who welcomed back star halfback Daly Cherry-Evans and captain Jamie Lyons from injury, creating attacking opportunities for their mammoth forwards to get some points on the board. While they gave it to the reigning premiers, the class and composure of JT was enough to get his team the win, in a tough slug of a game.
Round 16 had something for everyone, a one-point win, an acrobatic display, a sin-bin and everyone's favourite origin stars returning for their respective clubs. As the NRL enters the pointy end of the season, with 10 rounds to go, I see some clubs excelling and finding their legs, while others will still continue to crumble.
*All photos courtesy of NRL.com