The Knock-On Effect NSW Cup recap | Round 8

Panthers put on clinic in Bathurst

Andrew Jackson

The Knock-On Effect NSW Cup Panthers have put on a show at Carrington Park, continuing their undefeated start to the season with a dominant 52-6 win over the Blacktown Workers Sea Eagles.

Fresh from filling in at NRL level for Apisai Koroisau, hooker Mitch Kenny returned to The Knock-On Effect NSW Cup team and made an immediate impact after setting up the opening try.

Kenny took the ball out of dummy-half, giving little away as he summed up the situation on the last and put in a tough grubber that was fumbled by the Sea Eagles with Lindsay Smith following through to score.

The addition of Kenny saw Brendan Hands switched to the halves and he too orchestrated an early try, kicking through for Izack Tago who beat a couple of Sea Eagles defenders to the ball.

Kurt Falls slotted both conversions to make it a 12-0 lead.

The Panthers were in a mood, not settling for the early dominance and instead forcing an error from Blacktown Workers on the set after points with a determined kick chase.

Once more it was Hands the creator, throwing a cut-out pass to put Robert Jennings over out wide.

Falls could not convert the try, leaving the score at 16-0.

The Panthers were dazzling early with the ball in hand but they were just as impressive in defence, holding up a surging Zac Saddler in the first real examination close to the line.

The resilience on the line was rewarded soon after as Penrith scored their fourth of the afternoon.

A strong run from Smith drew a penalty and the Panthers quickly capitalised as Sunia Turuva skilfully put a foot to a wayward Hands pass, with Taylan May scooping the ball up to score out wide.

Penrith continued to hold firm in defence before Sorensen ran a strong line back against the grain to score and the Panthers were not done yet.

A quick spread in the dying seconds of the half saw Jennings steam down the left sideline and set up Tago for his second as the siren sounded.

Both tries were converted by Falls to put the Panthers in control 32-0 at half-time.

Penrith continued their dominance in the second half with tries to Brent Naden Taylan May before the Sea Eagles eventually broke through for their first of the afternoon when Brad Keighran sent Jordin Leiu through a hole.

Penrith hit back again through Naden who backed himself to beat three defenders to the line with that try converted.

The Panthers gave the Bathurst locals one final highlight with John Faiumu providing the offload to put Falls through and the halfback linked with Turuva on the outside to make it a comprehensive 52-6 win.

Canberra Raiders v South Sydney Rabbitohs

Rabbitohs hold on for thrilling win

Rachel Moran

South Sydney Rabbitohs have held on for a thrilling 26-22 win over the Canberra Raiders on Saturday afternoon at Raiders Belconnen.
The Raiders got off to a good start, but were unable to maintain possession in the middle of the game which left them on the back foot.

A ball from Sam William sent Harry Rushton over for the Raiders first try putting them in front 6-0 in the opening minutes.

The Rabbitohs were quick to hit back, shifting the ball out to the right edge where they were able to make forty metres. It was the support of five-eighth Troy Dargan on the inside who was able to equal the score 6-all.

A remarkable kick off from the Raiders, had them regain the ball after it hit the cross bar and bounced into the arms of hooker Adrian Trevilyan.

Williams was on a roll, kicking a 40/20 in the 13th minute to give the Raiders a perfect position to attack.

Manase Kaho gathered the ball on the Raiders left edge and dived over to get their second try for the afternoon and put them up 12-6.

In the 28th minute the Rabbitohs hit back after winger Steven Marsters scored on the right edge. An unsuccessful conversion kept the Raiders just in front 12-10.

Five minutes later the Raiders defence was in trouble, and Rabbitohs forward Trent Peoples crashed over to send the Rabbitohs in front.

Souths backed that up after prop Tevita Taumoepenu scored just metres from the posts to give them a 20-12 lead at half time.

The Raiders continued to defend in their end, but it was a second try by Marsters in the 50th minute which extended the Rabbitohs lead to 26-12.

A brilliant flick pass from Brad Schneider had Williams dive over to put the Raiders back in the game 18-26.

Williams was on fire in his support plays and was able to score again closing the gap 22-26 with 16 minutes to go.

Schneider broke through the line 5 minutes to go, making a 30 metre break but his inside support was unable to gather the ball, missing the opportunity to score.

Newcastle Knights v North Sydney Bears

Bears post convincing win over Knights

James Ward

North Sydney Bears have scored a 34-18 win over Newcastle at Mcdonald Jones Stadium in a match which saw Knights Lachlan Fitzgibbon and Tex Hoy return from injury.

The Bears scored a six tries to three win to hand Newcastle their fourth loss of the season.

After a cagey opening 15 minutes, dummy half Luke Huth made his way over for the first try of the night in the 14th minute.

The Bears would hit-back with two tries of their own after Moala Graham-Taufa and Sione Hopoate posted four-pointers in the space of four-minutes at the half hour mark.

Naufahu Whyte made it three tries for the Bears five minutes before the half-time siren.

John Toleafoa pegged one back for the Knights just on the stroke of half-time to make it 18-12 heading into the sheds.

The Bears extended their lead seven minutes into the second half as Josh Ralph streaked away to score.

A McKenzie Baker try was the only joy for the Knights in the second half as the Bears bolstered their position and went onto win the game.

Tries to Naufahu Whyte, his second of the night, and Shannon Gardiner in the final ten minutes put the finishing touches on the win for the Bears.

St George Illawarra Dragons v Western Suburbs Magpies

Magpies sneak home in sixth consecutive win

Mitchell Farrugia

In a match separated only by goal kicking, the Western Suburbs Magpies have narrowly defeated the Dragons at WIN Stadium 30-28.

It was the Dragons who struck first as the Magpies failed to deal with an attacking kick. Second-rower Shalom O’ofou was able to scoop up the loose ball to score the first points of the match in the seventh minute.

The Dragons looked to score for a second time, but the ball was dropped cold over the line by Jackson Ford.

They were able to double their early lead moments later through a darting play close to the line. Half Tyran Wishart sliced through to score untouched under the posts, pushing the Dragons lead out to 12 points.

On the stroke of halftime, the Magpies kept their chances alive. Reece Hoffman barged his way over the Dragons’ defence to get Wests on the board. Jock Madden was successful with his first goal attempt.

As the teams headed into the sheds it was the Dragons with the slight advantage, leading 12-6.  

The Red V ran out for the second half firing. With a smart set play, the Dragons charged through some soft Magpies defence as fullback Tony Pellow planted the ball to the left of the uprights.

Wests continued to fight on, forcing an error the set after conceding. Musgrove threatened close to the line, but the ball was put down on the ensuing play.

The Dragons made them pay. After marching the ball upfield, repeat sets tired the Magpies' defence. It was Mathew Feagai who darted over following some slick passing.

Trailing by 18 points, the Magpies were able to keep the door ajar. Hooker Jacob Liddle scored under the posts from dummy-half. The try set up a blockbuster finish with 20 minutes remaining.

Jock Madden continued to force repeat sets for Wests through his short kicking game. The pressure paid off as Zach Dockar-Clay was fed into a hole to score untouched, narrowing the Dragons' lead to just six points.

They continued to fly home as speedster Allan Fitzgibbon juggled the ball before placing it in the right-hand corner. Jock Madden maintained his perfect record with the boot to draw the game level at 24-all.

Jacob Liddle caught the Dragons napping again close to the line, eerily similar to his first as the Magpies took the lead for the first time.

It was a nervy final five minutes with the match on a knife's edge. The resilient Magpies were able to hold on, despite the Dragons scoring in the final minute of the match. Only a miss-hit conversion attempt separated the sides as Wests recorded their sixth consecutive win, defeating the Dragons 30-28.

Mounties v Parramatta Eels

Lewis' kicking masterclass leads Mounties to victory over Eels

Anthony Eltarraf

The Mounties displayed a dominant and classy performance against the fourth-placed Eels to secure a 34-20 victory over Parramatta at Aubrey Keech Reserve.

A win for Mounties would take them to equal points with the Eels, behind their opponents and the Raiders only on points differential. However, Parramatta were keen themselves to get the two points in order to comfortably remain in the top four.

Mounties began strongly through the middle and it did not take long before the opening try was scored through Lachlan Lewis, who regathered his own kick to score next to the posts within three minutes. Halfback Brandon Wakeham converted easily to give his side an early six-point lead.

The returning Lachlan Lewis seemed to be his side’s biggest attacking threat as another kick over the top of Parramatta’s defence led to a try, this time for Declan Casey, before Wakeham converted again to take Mounties’ lead to two converted tries.

It was all Mounties in the opening ten minutes and a third try for the home team came from yet another Lachlan Lewis kick, this time kicking in behind the line for his centre Aaron Schoupp, who tapped it forward himself before regathering and scoring for his side’s third consecutive try. Brandon Wakeham converted yet again to extend his side’s lead to 18.

Mounties continued their strong start, threatening to score again, however some gutsy Parramatta defence gave the away side a scoring chance at their own attacking line and it was all they needed to score their first try of the game through a barging Elie El-Zakhem. Jordan Rankin could not convert the try, keeping his side behind by fourteen points.

It looked as though Mounties had gained momentum back, attacking inside the Eels’ 20 again, however the away side were able to turn defence into attack and score a 90-metre try when Will Penisini picked up a loose ball to run the better part of 20 metres before handing the ball to Haze Dunster to finish it off. Rankin was able to convert this try, decreasing the margin to eight.

Parramatta, after a terrible start, were able to get themselves back into the game before halftime through a beautiful El-Zakhem offload to young halfback Jakob Arthur to score near the corner. Jordan Rankin converted his second of three attempts to take the Eels into the sheds just two points behind, at 18-16.

The second half began much like the first, with Mounties scoring inside five minutes through a raging Ben Seufale to score between the posts and extend his side’s lead to six points before Wakeham converted easily, taking the margin again to eight points.

The away side, however, did not look like giving up, and an outstanding long-range effort from Sean Russel saw the Eels just four points behind. Another unsuccessful conversion attempt from Jordan Rankin kept the margin at four with 25 minutes to go.

With momentum swinging between both teams, Mounties threatened to score again, however a penalty gifted them the opportunity to extend their lead to a converted try. They did just that through a fifth consecutive conversion for Brandon Wakeham before taking another penalty goal opportunity to take their lead to 28-20.

Mounties, desperate for a win, secured their victory through Reuben Rennie, who glided through a hole in the opposition’s defence to score between the posts. A flawless six from six conversions for Wakeham handed the home side a convincing 14-point win.