NRLW Highlights: Bulldogs v Knights
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The Advertiser
2 hours ago
- The Advertiser
Broncos' top-four charge is on as Mam leads comeback
Ezra Mam has engineered a Brisbane comeback for the ages, keeping the Broncos in the race for the NRL top four with a 22-18 win over Canterbury. On a Friday night when the Bulldogs' halves picture grew even murkier, Brisbane scored four tries in the final 20 minutes to win the game after trailing 18-0. Booed with every touch of the ball at Accor Stadium, Mam was at the centre of it all as he laid on three perfect passes late to mask over a poor Brisbane first half. The result kept the Broncos within two wins of the top four and the injury-stricken Warriors, and marked their second victory over Canterbury this year. Down on confidence and strike a month ago, the Broncos have now won four straight after also overhauling a 16-point deficit against Cronulla last month. But for 60 minutes on Friday, this looked like it would be anything but a good night for a Broncos side fielding two debutants. Selwyn Cobbo had a nightmare first half at fullback, while halfback Adam Reynolds sent two kicks out on the full and had another charged down. Canterbury never looked at their absolute best either, with Lachlan Galvin and Toby Sexton in the halves, and Matt Burton shifted to centre. But at 18-0 after 60 minutes and with Canterbury on the attack, it looked as if the Bulldogs had done enough to move back, momentarily, to the top of the ladder. Enter Mam. The five-eighth breathed life back into the Broncos when he made use of some broken play, shrugged off two defenders and sent Josiah Karapani over. Five minutes later he again created havoc on the left, laying on a beautiful cut-out ball to put centre Delouise Hoeter between two defenders and make it 18-10. Billy Walters also starred after doing likewise against Cronulla a fortnight ago, scoring a crucial try when he deceived Connor Tracey out of dummy-half. Then it was Mam again who produced the match-winner, juggling a ball before this time going short to second-rower Brendan Piakura to put him across. Mam has been the most controversial figure in rugby league this year after his nine-match ban for crashing a car while driving unlicensed and with drugs in his system. But after being Queensland's 18th man for State of Origin II, he was the difference on Friday night. "The way Reyno (Reynolds) and Ezra are coming together, they are starting to grow together a bit," coach Michael Maguire said. "Ezra took the game on. I saw Reyno talk to him at halftime about what they needed to do, and he went out there and did it.'' Cobbo also had two big plays late in his first NRL game in five weeks, after a nightmare first half when the Dolphins-bound star failed to clean up two kicks in the lead-up to Bulldogs tries. Filling in at fullback, he and Deine Mariner first let Burton chase through on his own kick and score. Another then came when a Galvin bomb was allowed to bounce, and Viliame Kikau strolled over. For Canterbury, the loss left more questions than answers about their halves after Burton was shifted to the centres with Stephen Crichton and Jacob Kiraz in NSW camp. Galvin and Sexton played on both sides of the ruck, but the Bulldogs were constantly guilty of pushing too many passes and searching for points. Several balls also went down on Galvin's left edge, as he and Burton struggled to find cohesiveness down that side. "We were trying to land knockout punches when we got some good ball," coach Cameron Ciraldo said. "The Broncos were defending well, and I think we just got frustrated and handed the ball over way too cheaply. "We were trying to force it too much." Ezra Mam has engineered a Brisbane comeback for the ages, keeping the Broncos in the race for the NRL top four with a 22-18 win over Canterbury. On a Friday night when the Bulldogs' halves picture grew even murkier, Brisbane scored four tries in the final 20 minutes to win the game after trailing 18-0. Booed with every touch of the ball at Accor Stadium, Mam was at the centre of it all as he laid on three perfect passes late to mask over a poor Brisbane first half. The result kept the Broncos within two wins of the top four and the injury-stricken Warriors, and marked their second victory over Canterbury this year. Down on confidence and strike a month ago, the Broncos have now won four straight after also overhauling a 16-point deficit against Cronulla last month. But for 60 minutes on Friday, this looked like it would be anything but a good night for a Broncos side fielding two debutants. Selwyn Cobbo had a nightmare first half at fullback, while halfback Adam Reynolds sent two kicks out on the full and had another charged down. Canterbury never looked at their absolute best either, with Lachlan Galvin and Toby Sexton in the halves, and Matt Burton shifted to centre. But at 18-0 after 60 minutes and with Canterbury on the attack, it looked as if the Bulldogs had done enough to move back, momentarily, to the top of the ladder. Enter Mam. The five-eighth breathed life back into the Broncos when he made use of some broken play, shrugged off two defenders and sent Josiah Karapani over. Five minutes later he again created havoc on the left, laying on a beautiful cut-out ball to put centre Delouise Hoeter between two defenders and make it 18-10. Billy Walters also starred after doing likewise against Cronulla a fortnight ago, scoring a crucial try when he deceived Connor Tracey out of dummy-half. Then it was Mam again who produced the match-winner, juggling a ball before this time going short to second-rower Brendan Piakura to put him across. Mam has been the most controversial figure in rugby league this year after his nine-match ban for crashing a car while driving unlicensed and with drugs in his system. But after being Queensland's 18th man for State of Origin II, he was the difference on Friday night. "The way Reyno (Reynolds) and Ezra are coming together, they are starting to grow together a bit," coach Michael Maguire said. "Ezra took the game on. I saw Reyno talk to him at halftime about what they needed to do, and he went out there and did it.'' Cobbo also had two big plays late in his first NRL game in five weeks, after a nightmare first half when the Dolphins-bound star failed to clean up two kicks in the lead-up to Bulldogs tries. Filling in at fullback, he and Deine Mariner first let Burton chase through on his own kick and score. Another then came when a Galvin bomb was allowed to bounce, and Viliame Kikau strolled over. For Canterbury, the loss left more questions than answers about their halves after Burton was shifted to the centres with Stephen Crichton and Jacob Kiraz in NSW camp. Galvin and Sexton played on both sides of the ruck, but the Bulldogs were constantly guilty of pushing too many passes and searching for points. Several balls also went down on Galvin's left edge, as he and Burton struggled to find cohesiveness down that side. "We were trying to land knockout punches when we got some good ball," coach Cameron Ciraldo said. "The Broncos were defending well, and I think we just got frustrated and handed the ball over way too cheaply. "We were trying to force it too much." Ezra Mam has engineered a Brisbane comeback for the ages, keeping the Broncos in the race for the NRL top four with a 22-18 win over Canterbury. On a Friday night when the Bulldogs' halves picture grew even murkier, Brisbane scored four tries in the final 20 minutes to win the game after trailing 18-0. Booed with every touch of the ball at Accor Stadium, Mam was at the centre of it all as he laid on three perfect passes late to mask over a poor Brisbane first half. The result kept the Broncos within two wins of the top four and the injury-stricken Warriors, and marked their second victory over Canterbury this year. Down on confidence and strike a month ago, the Broncos have now won four straight after also overhauling a 16-point deficit against Cronulla last month. But for 60 minutes on Friday, this looked like it would be anything but a good night for a Broncos side fielding two debutants. Selwyn Cobbo had a nightmare first half at fullback, while halfback Adam Reynolds sent two kicks out on the full and had another charged down. Canterbury never looked at their absolute best either, with Lachlan Galvin and Toby Sexton in the halves, and Matt Burton shifted to centre. But at 18-0 after 60 minutes and with Canterbury on the attack, it looked as if the Bulldogs had done enough to move back, momentarily, to the top of the ladder. Enter Mam. The five-eighth breathed life back into the Broncos when he made use of some broken play, shrugged off two defenders and sent Josiah Karapani over. Five minutes later he again created havoc on the left, laying on a beautiful cut-out ball to put centre Delouise Hoeter between two defenders and make it 18-10. Billy Walters also starred after doing likewise against Cronulla a fortnight ago, scoring a crucial try when he deceived Connor Tracey out of dummy-half. Then it was Mam again who produced the match-winner, juggling a ball before this time going short to second-rower Brendan Piakura to put him across. Mam has been the most controversial figure in rugby league this year after his nine-match ban for crashing a car while driving unlicensed and with drugs in his system. But after being Queensland's 18th man for State of Origin II, he was the difference on Friday night. "The way Reyno (Reynolds) and Ezra are coming together, they are starting to grow together a bit," coach Michael Maguire said. "Ezra took the game on. I saw Reyno talk to him at halftime about what they needed to do, and he went out there and did it.'' Cobbo also had two big plays late in his first NRL game in five weeks, after a nightmare first half when the Dolphins-bound star failed to clean up two kicks in the lead-up to Bulldogs tries. Filling in at fullback, he and Deine Mariner first let Burton chase through on his own kick and score. Another then came when a Galvin bomb was allowed to bounce, and Viliame Kikau strolled over. For Canterbury, the loss left more questions than answers about their halves after Burton was shifted to the centres with Stephen Crichton and Jacob Kiraz in NSW camp. Galvin and Sexton played on both sides of the ruck, but the Bulldogs were constantly guilty of pushing too many passes and searching for points. Several balls also went down on Galvin's left edge, as he and Burton struggled to find cohesiveness down that side. "We were trying to land knockout punches when we got some good ball," coach Cameron Ciraldo said. "The Broncos were defending well, and I think we just got frustrated and handed the ball over way too cheaply. "We were trying to force it too much."
News.com.au
3 hours ago
- News.com.au
‘I'm filthy': Cameron Ciraldo says the Bulldogs haven't reached their attacking potential as Lachlan Galvin fails to fire in the halves
A frustrated Cameron Ciraldo admits his side hasn't reached its attacking potential yet this season, with the Bulldogs coach disappointed in how his team handled the second half on Friday night as the Broncos stormed home to beat them 22-18. The Bulldogs led 18-0 in the second half but conceded the final four tries as a new-look backline failed to fire the premiership fancies with the game on the line. All eyes were on mid-season recruit Lachlan Galvin who was initially named on the bench but started at five-eighth alongside Toby Sexton, with Matt Burton switching to centre given they had Stephen Crichton and Jacob Kiraz away on Origin duty. Galvin set up a try with his right boot but made two errors and didn't gel well with his teammates on the left edge in what was his second start since leaving the Wests Tigers. Canterbury's attack is an easy focus given they were leading the league before Galvin arrived, with the next two months set to determine what their spine looks like heading into the finals. 'I don't think our attack has reached its potential all year, so we're searching for that, as most clubs are,' Ciraldo said. 'We're searching for what works. We've had a lot of turnover with different back-rowers and things like that so we're still searching. 'We've got nine or 10 weeks to go to figure that out, but you've got to learn your lessons quickly. We didn't learn ours from last week and take those into tonight.' While the halves conundrum will dominate the headlines for the rest of the season, Ciraldo doesn't have to worry about being asked questions about Sexton's future after the halfback signed a deal to play for Catalans. Sexton joined the club midway through the 2023 season and has done a fine job in the halves, but his role became a major talking point once Galvin signed. 'He came and saw me last night (Thursday) and told me about it,' Ciraldo said. 'It's really good for him and his family and I'm stoked for him because he's worked really hard. 'He was playing for Tweed Heads a couple of years ago and came down to the Bulldogs to get an opportunity. 'He had to bide his time at the start and then got his opportunity, and he's done really well. 'It's a great opportunity for him over there, but he was really clear that he's not thinking about that right now. He's thinking about how we get better at the back end of the season, and that's what we're all thinking.' Ciraldo has a week to decide who he should pick in the halves for their next game, with the coach disappointed in his side's second-half performance after failing to learn lessons from last week's loss to Penrith. 'I haven't thought too far past that game. We've got to go back and review that,' he said. 'There was a lot to like about what we did in the first half, but there are some lessons there. I'm filthy that we didn't learn our lessons from last week. 'We had to stand up and be better this week than what we were last week in those areas that we practised all week, but we weren't. 'I thought we were trying to force it too much. 'I thought the Broncos were defending really well at the start of the second half and we earned some possession, but we had to keep asking questions and play the field position game. 'We didn't, we tried to force it and it probably played into their hands.'
The Age
5 hours ago
- The Age
NRL Highlights: Bulldogs v Broncos
Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs host the Brisbane Broncos in Round 18 of the 2025 NRL Premiership at Accor Stadium, Sydney. Loading
