Sydney Roosters defeat South Sydney Rabbitohs in gritty clash

Rivals meet for the first time since bitter finals exit

The Sydney Roosters have avenged last year’s bitter finals exit to the Rabbitohs by claiming a 20-18 win over their arch rivals. In their first meeting since last September’s finals encounter that included a record seven sin-bin offences, the Roosters had to dig deep against the Rabbitohs, overturning a 10-0 deficit at the Sydney Football Stadium to claim a gusty victory.

Experienced players turn the tide for the Roosters

The introduction of veteran prop Jared Waerea-Hargreaves and hooker Brandon Smith midway through the first half turned the tide for the Roosters, who put in their best performance of the season so far. Waerea-Hargreaves played like a man possessed and Smith was able to fire off the back of that go-forward as he darted over for his try as a Roosters player with five minutes left in the half. It suddenly began to click for the Roosters.

Referee controls the contest well

Referee Gerard Sutton controlled the contest well and it was not until the last five minutes when he was forced to send players to the sin-bin after a fracas involving Roosters centre Joey Manu and the Rabbitohs’ Michael Chee Kam. Fullback Latrell Mitchell, who was playing just over a week since he was the victim of racial abuse during the Rabbitohs’ round-two match against Penrith, had flashes of brilliance despite being booed throughout the encounter.

Rabbitohs take early lead despite early setback

It could not have started much worse for the Rabbitohs after they lost prop Hame Sele to a head injury assessment in the opening minute. But despite the early setback, the Rabbitohs were able to hit the lead with Lachlan Ilias sending Keaon Kololoamatangi over after eight minutes.

Dolphins stay undefeated in debut NRL season

In Friday night’s earlier match, the Dolphins stayed undefeated in their debut NRL season with a 36-20 victory over the Knights in Newcastle. Wayne Bennett’s troops made it three-from-three to start their maiden season, as they came out on top of a see-sawing clash in Newcastle.

Knights show impressive resilience despite depleted squad

The Knights were gutsy, despite having nine players out and three debutants on the bench, while prop Daniel Saifiti sustained a shoulder injury to add to their woes. Halfback Jackson Hastings also ended the match off the field for a concussion check, after earlier combining nicely with Lachlan Miller and Tyson Gamble. The Knights twice fought back valiantly.

Broncos set to face Dolphins in historic clash

It means next Friday’s historic encounter between the Dolphins and Brisbane will be close to a top-of-the-ladder battle, with the Broncos also entering this weekend unbeaten. Former Bronco Tesi Niu bagged three tries as the Dolphins troubled the Knights down the left edge while containing the dangerous Dom Young nicely.

Dolphins dominate early stages

The Dolphins dominated the early stages, with two of Niu’s tries in the first half the result of slick passes from his centre Euan Aitken. Kodi Nikorima also claimed a four-pointer before the break when he went over from dummy half. But the Knights were able to keep the margin to four points through tries to Gamble and Miller.

Credit: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-03-17/nrl-knights-dolphins-roosters-rabbitohs/102097528

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