Source :- THE AGE NEWS
Sydney Roosters have edged past Canterbury in a 20-18 win that has blown the race for the NRL’s minor premiership wide open.
On a pivotal night in the make-up of the top four, the Roosters moved up to second with a late win at Allianz Stadium that puts Trent Robinson’s men level on 36 points with ladder-leading Penrith.
The Panthers, who sit first as a result of their superior for and against, host the Roosters next Thursday and look set to be without captain Isaah Yeo.
Even without facing Yeo, the Roosters will have to turn things up a notch against the Panthers as the race for the minor premiership looks set to go to the wire.
Robinson’s side led 8-2 at half-time on Friday but were stunned when a try from Lachlan Galvin and a Jacob Kiraz double in a 12-minute second-half spell catapulted the Bulldogs into an unlikely lead.
But a miscommunication at the back by Bulldogs fullback Connor Tracey allowed Salesi Foketi to dive on a loose kick and claim the match-winning try in the 69th minute.
The victory gave the Roosters a seventh-straight win but also puts a major dent in Canterbury’s top-eight aspirations after they threatened to upset the home side.
Stephen Crichton kicked a penalty to get the Bulldogs on the board after sixth minutes before Sam Walker and Hugo Savala combined down the left to send Billy Smith in at the corner.
Then after Matt Burton failed to gather a Daly Cherry-Evans bomb, Siua Wong touched down for the Roosters who led 8-2 at half-time after Walker failed to convert both kicks.
The Bulldogs had struggled for spark in the first half but they came back after half-time with a bang as hooker Bailey Hayward burst up the middle of the field and found a supporting Kiraz.
The Canterbury winger scored under the posts as Crichton converted to tie the game up.
Galvin then put the Bulldogs ahead for the first time when the five-eighth drifted across field and darted through a Reece Robson tackle to score.
Galvin set up Kiraz for his side’s third but Canterbury were unable to find a knockout blow and the Roosters clawed their way back into the game.
Smith added a second with 15 minutes left before Foketi was in the right place at the right time, touching down a Walker bomb that Tracey failed to take to score the decisive try.
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It’s just about do-or-die time for the Bulldogs now and they go high with a Stephen Crichton bomb towards Mark Nawaqanitawase – who leaps, soars and plucks the ball out of the air in style. Two minutes left.
The Roosters play out a simple set and Daly Cherry-Evans pumps the ball deep into the Bulldogs’ half with his clearing kick. The Dogs can’t conjure anything in attack from their first five plays so send the ball through the hands on the last, but their right-side shift finishes with Enari Tuala being polaxed by a Victor Radley tackle as he passes the ball over the sideline.
That’ll do it for the Roosters. There was none of the pizzazz of last week’s romp, but plenty of grit on show tonight. Good effort too from the Bulldogs, who come up just short.
Roosters 20 beat Bulldogs 18 at Allianz Stadium
The Bulldogs halves have a miscommunication in the backline, Lachie Galvin throwing a pass that Stephen Crichton wasn’t ready for, and Crichton puts the ball down only for Galvin to pick it up in front of him.
That’s an offside penalty, and the Roosters opt to take the two points.
But Sam Walker’s mixed night with the boot continues, and he pushes it wide from right in front, 33 metres out. It does at least soak up a bit more time for the Roosters.
Roosters 20, Bulldogs 18 with three minutes left
The Roosters target the error-prone Jethro Rinakama with another bomb but this time the Bulldogs winger takes it well, then is tackled and dragged into his own in-goal – but it’s a penalty against the Roosters for going on with it after the tackle was completed.
That allows Canterbury to fast-track their way upfield, and they run it on the last tackle down the left, Matt Burton finding a bit of space a few metres from the Roosters’ line before losing control of the ball.
It’s a fast and frenetic final few minutes here, with the feeling that the next try could seal it.
Roosters 20, Bulldogs 18 with six minutes left
The Roosters have a good set after points and Sam Walker puts up a bomb from the Bulldogs’ 40-metre line, which falls right between Lachie Galvin and Connor Tracey – who both look at each other and let the ball bounce. That’s always playing with fire, and the ball hurtles towards the goal posts, with Salesi Foketi chasing it down to score and give the Tricolours the lead.
The bunker is taking several looks at the replays before the referee confirms the try, and Walker’s conversion puts the home side in front.
Roosters 20, Bulldogs 18 with nine minutes left
The Roosters once again get an attacking scrum inside the Bulldogs’ 20 metres after Jethro Rinakama coughs up his fourth error of the game, and this time the Tricolours don’t get it wrong. They keep things simple on play one and two, then go wide on play three, Daly Cherry-Evans linking up with Cody Ramsey who fires a cutout pass to Billy Smith who goes over untouched in the corner.
That makes it three tries apiece, with goal-kicking (and the Bulldogs’ early penalty goal) the difference. Sam Walker lines up a tricky sideline conversion … and slots it.
Bulldogs 18, Roosters 14 with 11 minutes left
The Roosters need to fight their way back into this one, and it looks like they’ve come up empty when a knock on is ruled against Naufahu Whyte after a Daly Cherry-Evans bomb. But the Roosters use a captains challenge successfully, with replays showing Canterbury’s Jethro Rinakama dropped the ball instead.
It’s an attacking scrum feed for the Tricolours, which have twice led to Robert Toia knock ons so far tonight. It couldn’t happen again could it?
Yes it could! A set play results in a flat pass to Toia, who puts it down. Nightmare stuff this for Trent Robinson, after absolutely everything worked a treat for the Roosters last week in their stunning 82-12 romp over the Cowboys.
Cowboys 18, Roosters 8 with 17 minutes left
The Bulldogs’ blitz continues. Cody Ramsey loses the ball in a tackle and the Bulldogs immediately send the ball through the hands to the right, Jacob Kiraz getting it with some room to move and he puts the afterburners on to run around Salesi Foketi and score in the corner.
This has been a big turnaround for the Dogs in the second half.
Bulldogs 18, Roosters 8 with 23 minutes left
It’s all Bulldogs now after a Siua Wong error and a Viliame Kikau half break, and they go close to scoring their second try when Stephen Crichton rolls a dangerous grubber into the Roosters’ in-goal. But the ball is just out of reach of chasing Canterbury winger Jethro Rinakama and trickles into touch.
The Dogs have no such troubles on their next trip into the Tricolours’ half, Lachie Galvin running with the ball in two hands, shaping to pass then opting to run, brushing through a Reece Robson tackle to score to the left of the goal posts.
Bulldogs 14, Roosters 8 with 28 minutes left
