The NRL continued its early trend of unpredictability in Round 2.
As always, the start of an NRL season is proving an interesting time as new players and coaches come to grips with each other and attempt to implement all of the off-season plans. The result of which has seen a host of upsets and some dramatic improvement in some of the teams.
Here are the individual results from Round 2:
Canterbury Bankstown Bulldogs (32) v Parramatta Eels (12)
The round started off with bruising encounter between the Eels and Bulldogs at ANZ stadium. The Eels coming off second best with an array of injuries to key personnel throughout the half (Watmough, Radradra, Champion and Sandow), although Watmough and Sandow returned later in the game to battle on. The Bulldogs took advantage of a make shift left side defence and a tired Eels outfit running away with the game 32-12. Brett Morris was again superb for the Dogs, while Moses Mbye filled in well for Josh Reynolds, and Michael Lichaa is a candidate for signing of the season so far.
Cronulla Sharks (2) v Brisbane Broncos (10)
Next up, the Broncos v Sharks at Remondis Stadium, two teams struggling for form made worse by severe wet weather. Both sides were guilty of turning over too much ball in conditions that did not suit expansive rugby league, but both handled themselves solidly on defence throughout. The Broncos taking the two competition points with a narrow 10-2 win. Concerns remain over the Anthony Milford / Ben Hunt combination, but Milford’s young, he’s learning and has the talent to pick up a position – he just needs time. Corey Parker spent less time at hooker, and therefore made a bigger impact in the middle of the park. For the Sharks, Barba was a little disappointing, he seems to have lost all of his Dally M spark and is not driving any attacking creativity to the Sharks play.
Penrith Panthers (40) v Gold Coast Titans (0)
Perfect conditions at Bathurst played host to the Panthers and Titans in front of a very small crowd (6,240). A relatively error ridden and uneventful first half from both sides saw the Panthers lead by just 8-0. However, a relentless Penrith turned up in the 2nd half scoring 32 points, mainly orchestrated by their halves, with Idris dotting down three times and Whare twice in a dominant performance. Panthers head straight to the top of the table, but have to win their next match against the impressive Roosters without Jamie Soward, but with Josh Mansour.
Manly Sea-Eagles (24) v Melbourne Storm (22)
At Brookvale the Sea Eagles hosted the Melbourne Storm. A first half barrage and excellent execution by the Sea Eagles saw them get up 24-6 at half time. Daly Cherry-Evans putting the controversy surrounding his Titans deal behind him to play a major part in the first half action. Many would have expected the Sea Eagles to capitalise on such a lead, however a resilient Storm pushed the Sea Eagles for 40 minutes, keeping their hosts scoreless but falling short by 2 points. Solid defence from the Sea Eagles late in the dying minutes getting them home. Melbourne are getting some solid minutes out of Tohu Harris at the moment, and Blake Green looks a good fit in the number 6 jersey (he crossed for two tries), they should continue to improve over the coming weeks.
North Queensland Cowboys (14) v Newcastle Knights (16)
Much like Brookvale, Townsville hosted a game of two halves with the Knights getting up over the Cowboys 16-14. The Cowboys led 14-4 at half time, but yet another scoreless half from an NRL side allowed the Knights to pull away and register an unlikely win – their second in a row. The Knights are one of four unbeaten teams after two weeks and easily the least expected of the four. Jarred Mullen is loving the responsibility under Rick Stone, and Joey Leilua is probably the hardest man to tackle in Rugby League at the moment – just as he was during the Four Nations last year. One of the major talking points of the match was the Knights borderline illegal targeting of Jonathan Thurston when he was kicking. Attacking the legs of a kicker is still frowned upon, and the Knights toed the line brilliantly to nullify the threat of JT. The Knights players all escaped judiciary attention too.
South Sydney Rabbitohs (34) v Sydney Roosters (26)
The match of the round at ANZ resulted in the 2014 Premiers once again getting the better of their finals counterparts with a 34-26 victory. A true spectacle of rugby league saw 5 tries in the first half with the Roosters leading 16-12 at half time. The Roosters strengthen that advantage and led by as much as 26-18 while Adam Reynolds spend some time on the sideline going through a concussion test. When he returned, he sparked three tries in the final quarter to demonstrate the Rabbitohs inability to concede defeat. The set up for Joel Reddy in particular was something truly special. George Burgess enjoyed his best game of the season; relishing the match-ups with Hargreaves and Napa.
Canberra Raiders (6) v New Zealand Warriors (18)
GIO Stadium hosted the Raiders and Warriors on Sunday afternoon. An uneventful first half with plenty of errors meant the teams were locked at 6-6 at half-time. The second half saw these errors continue for the Raiders gifting the Warriors possession twiced inside 5 minutes; both opportunities the Warriors converted through tries to Ryan Hoffman and Solomone Kata. Shaun Johnson again struggled; this time with an injured forearm compounding his troubles. He’s run the ball just five times in two games, which is not enough for the Golden Boot (best player in the world) holder. The Warriors are seeing some incredible returns from Albert Vete and Sam Lisone. The newbies have been so effective that Origin representative, Jacob Lillyman, has been restricted to just 25 minutes per game. The Raiders are simply making too many mistakes, but they’ve shown enough in the first two rounds to suggest their much improved from last year. On the point of signings of the season, throw Sia Soliola in the mix, he’s been incredible.
West Tigers (22) v St George Illawarra Dragons (4)
The last game of the round at Campbeltown was awfully dire. We caught only the second half but wished we’d spent our time putting pins in our eyes instead of watching. The second half witnessed just two points, off the boot of Pat Richards, as the Dragons tightened the defence that had been so easily penetrated earlier by young whizz kid, James Tedesco. Teddy was the key in three tries in the first 27 minutes as the Tigers paved the way for a second straight win. Worryingly for the Dragons they have mustered just 8 points in their first two games of the season – the least number of points in the first two games of a season for any team in the last 15 seasons. Adding insult to the loss, were Greg Alexander’s comments during commentary likening their attack to that of a “seven year old’s passing drill”. Paul McGregor has responded by putting his halves (Marshall and Widdop) on notice. Improve or head to the Holden Cup.
