Dragons

Dragons knock Eels out of top four with fourth straight win

Dynamic fullback Matt Dufty starred with two tries and two first-half assists for Jack Bird and Mikaele Ravalawa but the scoreboard didn't quite reflect a tough contest where Parramatta struggled to execute.

St George Illawarra's goal-line and scramble defence was outstanding as they displayed line-speed and aggression from the get-go, shocking the Eels and mounting an 18-0 half-time lead.

They overcame the sin-binning of Tariq Sims early in the second half, after which the hosts finally scored, to eventually kick clear.

Hunt pulls strings as Dragons overpower Sea Eagles

Hunt was influential at hooker, setting up a try and booting Manly into submission by finding the open spaces of Netstrata Jubilee Stadium with kicks before the last tackle.

The Sea Eagles struck first through Joel Thompson but St George Illawarra ran in six unanswered tries - four in the second half - to secure their third victory of the year.

Without injured stars Tom Trbojevic and Dylan Walker and the suspended Addin Fonua-Blake, Manly appeared lost at times.

Dragons back on track at Bulldogs

 

The Dragons had slipped down the ladder with a string of defeats since their last win in April, but they were back on track thanks to a one-sided triumph on the road.

The visitors had Corey Norman back from a fractured cheekbone and both he and Queensland Maroons star Ben Hunt scored in inspiring performances.

It started badly for the Dragons as Raymond Faitala-Mariner crossed for the Bulldogs inside two minutes, but the Dragons were soon on top.

Warriors topple NRL leaders

The home side produced a superb defensive effort to hand the Dragons their first loss of the season.

The win had seemed safe with 14 minutes to go when hooker Isaac Luke grabbed the home side's third try.

Luke, who made several dummy-half runs, produced a 40-20 and finished off by scoring close to the line.

But the Dragons set up a grandstand finish when second-rower Tariq Sims forced his way over for a converted try with six minutes to go to close the gap to four points.

Warriors ready for 'blockbuster' against Dragons

Actually doing it will be even more difficult.

Traditionally, the words "blockbuster billing", "St George Illawarra" and "Warriors" haven't belonged in the same sentence.

The two clubs - or three if you include the four years of the Warriors' existence before St George and Illawarra merged - have made the finals in the same season just five times.

Nor have they ever met in a finals clash.

In simple terms, this makes Friday night's match the biggest ever played between the two sides.

Huge win has Red V well placed

‌Scoring points had been an issue for Paul McGregor's side in recent weeks with the Red V managing to post 20 or more points just once since their Round 12 bye. However, they turned that around with their highest score since they smashed the Raiders 58-16 in 2007 to keep their finals hopes alive. 

The damage was done in the first half with the Dragons racing in five unanswered tries before Manly mounted a stirring second-stanza comeback, only for the Red V to respond with the final four tries of the afternoon.

Updated team lists: Dragons v Knights

Retiring Dragons co-captain Ben Creagh was named on Tuesday but will not play, with Joel Thompson to start in the back row. Tyson Frizell is also out, replaced by Will Matthews in the starting side. Tim Lafai and Luciano Leilua join the final bench.

Roosters run riot to end Dragons' season

Needing to win their final three games of the regular season – and results to go their way – the Red V were simply never in the contest as the Tricolours secured their third win from their past four starts to rise up to 13th spot on the Telstra Premiership ladder. 

There was no stopping the three-time defending minor premiers who belied their lowly ranking in what was a faultless performance from start to finish. 

Blake Ferguson ran for a whopping 235 metres, Mitchell Pearce added three try assists to his ever-growing tally, while Daniel Tupou had his best game of 2016. 

Fit Benji ready to Marshall the troops

Marshall has been limited to just six games in 2016 due to a hamstring strain that flared up either side of the Round 5 clash in North Queensland, but appeared unencumbered in the return clash against the Cowboys before last week's bye. 

Lafai joins the Dragons

Lafai, 24, who can play in the centres, was recently granted a release by the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs after five seasons with the club.