Bunnies 18 bath Roosters 6 at Aussie

South Sydney’s new star recruits David Kidwell, Roy Asotasi and Nigel Vagana amongst others led the way for the Bunnies tonight in a convincing win over neighbors the Sydney Roosters, racing to a 12-0 first half lead before finishing the job later on.

Up to 24,000 people braved the wet conditions, with the Rabbitohs impressive start to the season putting other leading NRL teams on notice.

On a slightly cold and miserable night, South Sydney came out on fire and put the Roosters to the sword from the get go, scoring a try just 14 minutes in.

Attacking close to the Roosters line, diminutive halfback Joe Williams was the beneficiary of South’s first try of the new competition, slicing through some flimsy defence and diving over the white line for a try.

Shell shocked and disorientated, the Roosters found themselves further behind just three minutes later, when former Bulldogs and Cronulla centre Nigel Vagana grabbed his first try of 2007.

Attacking inside the Rooster’s red zone, the Rabbitohs moved the ball from left to right, with new five-eighth Jeremy Smith placing a perfectly weighted grubber kick for the New Zealand international to pounce on and skilfully ground the ball just a centimetre inside the try line.

With the Rabbits up 12 points to nil, the two teams began to bulk up in defence.

Both sides were guilty of performing some questionable tackles, however neither side was able to make any further impression on the score line by half time.

Coming into the second half, South’s coach Jason Taylor’s instructions would have been for more of the same, and that’s exactly what he got.

Just six minutes in Williams extended his side’s lead by a further two points, slotting a penalty between the sticks.

The Rabbitohs were then denied the opportunity to wrap up the game shortly before the hour mark, with the video hreferee ruling out South Sydney’s try for obstruction.

The men in green and red were to rue their missed opportunity as the Roosters went the length of the field to pull back a four pointer of their own.

A high bomb put up in the air had Nathan Merritt in all sorts of trouble, with the little winger fumbling the ball on his own line and new Roosters halfback Josh Lewis picking up the pieces and reducing the score by six points.

However, unlike former South Sydney outfits this side was not about to implode, and after a few attempts the new look Rabbitohs were able to finally wrap up the game 13 minutes from time.

Close to the Roosters line, a beautiful sweeping move opened up an overlap on the far left hand side, with quick hands allowing Nigel Vagana a clear path to the try line and an impressive 18-6 win over the Roosters.

The surprise win will have the South Sydney outfit in good steed for next week’s showdown against the Parramatta Eels,

But the Roosters will need to pick up the pieces and regroup for their clash against the North Queensland Cowboys if they want their 1000^th win to come sooner rather than later.

SOUTH SYDNEY 18 (N Vagana 2 J Williams tries; J Williams 3 goals) def SYDNEY ROOSTERS 6 (J Lewis try; C Fitzgibbon goal)
Referee: P Simpkins Crowd: 24,127 at Aussie Stadium.

Knights over-run tiring Bulldogs 25-24
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A 12 man Bulldogs side got run down today after setting up an 18 point lead over the disjointed Newcastle Knights.

Newcastle skipper Andrew Johns has been sent to hospital and Bulldogs star Sonny Bill Williams sent off. Newcastle overcame the fourth-minute loss of their chief playmaker and a 24-8 halftime deficit to storm home against a tiring 12-man Dogs and claim victory with Kurt Gidley's 73rd minute field goal.

The big talking point, though, came just three minutes and 36 seconds into a phenomenal first-round clash when Johns was left unconscious by Williams' swinging left arm. Referee Tony Archer had no option but to give the Bulldogs backrower his marching orders, with Williams also likely to face a lengthy suspension for the high shot.

Johns, widely regarded as the world's best rugby league player, lay motionless face down on the turf for more than five minutes after the high shot. He was stretchered off wearing a neck brace, and although cleared of a neck injury, was taken straight to hospital for scans on his cheekbone.

Coach Brian Smith said Johns had suspected facial fractures. The 18,791-strong crowd watched on in silence as Johns received on-field medical attention, but as he was being taken off Knights supporters began to scream "off, off" as Archer called out Williams. "Straight in the face, knocked him out, you're off," Archer told the Kiwi backrower.

The Knights appeared shell-shocked after losing Johns, and the Bulldogs, despite being one man short, took full advantage. They raced to an 18-2 victory after 18 minutes with tries to Andrew Ryan, Luke Patten and Reni Maitua. Knights hooker Jeremy Seu Seu scored on debut in the 27th minute to stop the bleeding, before Bulldogs winger Trent Cutler gave the visitors a 24-8 halftime lead.

Newcastle regrouped at the break and came out firing to level the scores 24-24 in the 58th minute after tries to Josh Perry, Todd Polglase and James McManus. Both teams had chances to break the deadlock, but it took Gidley's wobbly field goal from 15 metres seven minutes from to eventually seal a heart-stopping win for the Knights.

The Bulldogs, though, should have stolen the match in the final minutes. Replacement Dallas McIlwain butchered a certain try in the 78th when he dropped a Cutler pass cold with the line wide open. A 40m field goal attempt from Dogs halfback Ben Roberts then fell just short in the final seconds.

SUMMARY: BULLDOGS: 24 Tries: 4 Andrew Ryan, Luke Patten, Reni Maitua, Trent Cutler Goals: 4 Hazem El Masri (4/4) Knights: 25 Tries: 4 Terence Seu Seu, Josh Perry, Todd Polglase, James McManus Goals: 4 Kurt Gidley (4/4) Field Goals Kurt Gidley (1/1)

Dragons hold firm against lively Titans 20-18
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The newly formed franchise - Gold Coast Titans proved that they will be a contender in NRL 2007, after courageously going down 20-18 to the St George-Illawarra Dragons at Suncorp Stadium today.

A large crowd of over 42,000 were on hand, to see the Gold Coast Titans first premiership match, with the Titans gutsy display winning them to a tonne of new fans.

In an entertaining first period, the Tians enjoyed more possession and field postion. Ex-Sharks star Matt Rogers showed flashes of brilliance and his involvement bringing the crowd to their feet.

The first points came in the 8th minute when a bouncing cut out pass from Campbell, found Chris Walker, who had a tough job to finish the movement and score his clubs first premiership points. Walker then added the extras to send the Titans into the lead 6-0.

Titans dropped ball soon afforded the Dragons their first chance, and the red and whites obliged scoring their first try in the 23rd minute. A solid dummy half run from Woolford found Ben Hornby in 2nd phase, who flicked a beautiful inside ball for new pivot Richie Williams to go in under the black dot. Wes Naiqama then easily nailed the conversion to level the scores.

A contentious penalty given in the 43rd min opened the door for the Dragons to hit the lead 8-6, given by Chris Walker for not playing the ball correctly.

New Dragons pivote Richie Williams then scored his second try 50 mins into the match, Ritchie intercepted a Scott Prince long pass and steered clear of the Titans defenders to go in under the sticks. Another easy conversion followed and the Saints were now in control at 14-6.

Again the Dragons were dangerous and 2 minutes later they were in to score again. This time winger Keith Lulia, after a slick backline movement that went 80 metres. Naiqama landed a hard one from the sideline to send the Saints well ahead 20-6.

The Titans hit back quickly, after quick penalties were given by the Saints and allowed the Titans gain good field position. The Titans backline then showed off its flair, with Prince, Campbell and Hilder sending solid Jake Webster into a gap, and the Kiwi International was able to offload to Chris Walker who bagged his second try. Chris Walker then converted his own try, seeing the Dragons lead narrowed to 20-12

An dubious chip from Prince in the 64th was then put down by Dragons fullback Josh Morris, allowing the Titans' Jake Webster to scoop up the ball to score an easy try. Walker converted again to make it 20-18 - bringing the Titans within a bee's dick of taking the lead.

Shortly after, the Saints had a chance to close the game out in the 73rd minute, when Wes Naiqama appeared to have grounded a lost ball after a drop from Paea in the in-goal area. Claiming a try, the decision was sent to video referee Chris Ward who ruled No Try.

Ex-Union star Matt Rogers had the Titans faithful chanting in the 76th minute, when he cut through the Saints defence, sprinting 50 metres before chipping to the in-field. Paea got to the ball first for the Titans but couldn’t gain control of the bouncing ball with Hornby and Morris pressuring.

The Titans then sent attacking raids in waves during the final minutes, but the young Saints were able to hang in for an impressive win under the circumstances.

Injury worries loom for Gold Coast's Chris Walker who hobbled during match with a leg injury and more tests are expected on his thumb during the week, while for the Saints, a blood ridden Ben Creagh finished the game groggy and bleeding heavily after a massive second half head clash with Luke Bailey.


St George-Illawarra Dragons 20 (Richie Williams 2, Keith Lulia tries; Wes Naiqama 4 goals)
Defeated
Gold Coast Titans 18 (Chris Walker 2, Jake Webster tries; Chris Walker 3 goals)
At Suncorp Stadium

Sharks Shut-Out Panthers 18-0
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A re-invented Cronulla Sharks has broken a 10 game losing streak, with Ricky Stuarts men keeping a clean sheet at Toyota Park.

On difficult night for free-flowing football, with the southerly blowing and the rain falling, the Sharks turned on a tremendous defensive performance, shutting down the Panthers in a performance which pleased new coach Ricky Stuart.

It was the first time the Sharks had kept a team scoreless since round 23 of the 1999 season, when they defeated the Wests Tigers by 46-0.

“It’s only the first game but I was very happy with the performance,” Sharks coach Ricky Stuart said. “We did a lot of the little things right, the things we’ve practiced.

“We’ve had our knockers in the off-season. They were saying Kimmorley and Dykes can’t play together, we’ve lost however many games it is in a row, so this win was important to start to build our confidence.”

The match was something of an arm wrestle, with the conditions contributing to what was a defensive struggle. The Sharks defended grimly when it was required, limited their errors and controlled the ball and kicked intelligently with the wind at their backs.

In the first half there were very few genuine scoring opportunities, with the Sharks first points of the new season coming from a brilliantly worked set play from a scrum.

Winning the ball inside the Panthers quarter line, Greg Bird picked the ball up at the base of the scrum, wandered sideways, before turning and passing inside to Brett Kearney who ran into a yawning hole in the Penrith defence to touch down adjacent to the posts. Luke Covell added the extras and the Sharks were ahead by 6-0.

With the visitors enjoying the benefits of a strong wind at their backs the Panthers managed to camp in the Sharks defensive end of the field, however showing a resolve in defence missing in recent seasons, the Sharks scrambled and held on, repelling their opponents for three successive sets of six tackles.

Neither team was able to assert their authority on the match, with the Sharks going to the break ahead by just a converted try.

After the Panthers botched the kick-off to restart the second half, with the ball bouncing dead in goal, a penalty to the Sharks for a lifting tackle on Bird was potted over from close range by Covell and the Sharks would stretch their advantage to eight points.

The momentum would then swing the other way, with the Panthers again dominating possession and pressing the Sharks try line, but again the Sharks managed to hold firm.

Another Covell penalty goal in the 57th minute put the Sharks further ahead at 10-0 before another set move resulted in the second try of the night to Kearney.

Skipper Brett Kimmorley switched the point of the attack before a perfectly timed pass from Isaac De Gois saw Kearney burst through a hole and scoot 25 metres to score. Covell’s conversion attempt was waved away but the Sharks had built a match winning 14-0 lead.

In putting the icing on the cake the Sharks scored in the dying moments, with Covell capping off a solid performance on the wing by touching down after a well-weighted kick from Bird.

In a team full of stars, the Sharks were probably best served by Kearney at fullback, Bird at lock and Kimmorley at half back. Reece Williams and Lance Thompson put in 80-minute performances, while Ben Ross and Craig Stapleton were strong up front.

At the post-match presentation Kearney was awarded the player’s player, while Bird took out the Chairman’s Award.

In the lower grade the Sharks suffered two losses, with the Premier League going down 34-26 in a high scoring affair, while the Jersey Flegg were gallant in defeat against last years Flegg premiers, losing by 11-4.

The best player awards in the lower grades went to Andrew Fox in Jersey Flegg and Henry Perenara in Premier League.

SHARKS 18
Brett Kearney 2, Luke Covell tries, Luke Covell 3 goals

Defeated the

PANTHERS 0

Manly dust Raiders at Brookvale 32-6
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The Sea Eagles started the season in style with a resounding 32 points to 6 victory over the Canberra Raiders at Brookvale Oval.

Both teams struggled early in the challenging conditions. A wet surface and a strong southerly wind resulted in numerous handling errors and neither team successfully applied any pressure in the opening exchanges.

Manly lost Steve Matai 12 minutes in with an ankle injury that initially looked very worrying, however after receiving some on field treatment he was able to walk off with the assistance of the trainers. A quick reshuffle saw Lyon go to left centre and Travis Burns take up his old role at 5/8.

A break by Glenn Stewart gave the Sea Eagles some attacking momentum in the 25th minute. From the following play captain Matt Orford saw the fullback was missing and put a kick downfield. Brett Stewart took off after the ball and he looked all set to score however a cover defender halted his charge. The ball came loose and Michael Robertson found himself in the perfect position to score the Sea Eagles’ opening try of the season. Orford was unable to convert from the sideline.

Manly’s second try came from another piece of Matt Orford brilliance. A perfect kick from the halfback popped up for Luke Williamson who led the charge for the line. Williamson grounded the ball and after going to the video ref was awarded the try. Orford was unable to convert.

The Sea Eagles were starting to get the upper hand and on the back of repeat penalties found themselves in prime attacking position. For the third time Matt Orford’s boot sliced through the Canberra defence and Jamie Lyon was on hand to grab his first points for the Sea Eagles. Orford converted from close range and that rounded out the points for the first half.

With Steve Matai (12th minute) and Steve Menzies (25th minute) out for the remainder of the match the Sea Eagles’ only comfort coming into the second half was the strong wind blowing at their backs.

A 4th minute try to Marshall Chalk certainly put fear into the side but as fate would have it a problem with the lights halted play for a few minutes and gave the Sea Eagles a breather and a chance to regroup.

A 40/20 from Travis Burns in the 9th minute gave the Sea Eagles an excellent opportunity to hit back. When George Rose planted the ball a few tackles later it looked as though Manly would kick on, however Rose grounded the ball on the goal post pad before projecting the ball and the Video Ref ruled a double movement.

It was another 11 minutes before the Sea Eagles finally cracked the line. A perfectly positioned cross field kick from Burns came free as Robertson and Best contested the ball. Lyon was on hand to grab the ball, improve the position and score the try. After again going to the Video Ref the try was awarded and Lyon converted his own try.

Orford was struggling with a knee injury and the lights were still playing up but it didn’t seem to be affecting the Sea Eagles performance. Five minutes after Lyon crossed his centre partner Steve Bell did the same. Sporting Maroon and White head gear Bell received an inside ball from Brett Stewart that gave him room to run, sidestep some defenders and dive over the line. Lyon converted from close range and the Sea Eagles had a twenty point lead.

The Sea Eagles were showing some fantastic form, down two interchange players, Matt Orford on one leg and Glenn Stewart struggling with a leg problem also it was quite amazing how dominant they were.

With nine minutes still on the clock the Sea Eagles were in again and not surprisingly it was on the back of another brilliant kick. Matt Orford set himself for the kick and Brett Stewart went inland.

The Banana kick was on.

Sure enough the ball came Stewart’s way and just as it looked as though Stewart would continue his amazing try scoring record at Brookvale a flying Jason King dived on the ball and scored! Oh boy did the celebrations begin and the smile on Kingy’s face was on par with Luna Park. Lyon converted the relatively easy shot at goal.

Michael Robertson was oh so close to scoring his second with three minutes remaining but he was unable to cleanly ground a lovely grubber from Brett Stewart. Robertson lay motionless for a few moments after copping a heavy knee as he went in for the try.

The remaining minutes counted down and there was a massive cheer from the fans when the siren finally went.

The Sea Eagles were fairly reserved and kept the play tight in the blustery conditions. Coach Des Hasler was especially proud of the effort from his forwards. Michael Monaghan played the entire match and took pressure of Orford and Burns when it was needed. Glenn Hall had a good debut and Luke Williamson was strong with a team high 37 tackles. Glenn Stewart made 162 metres and made 23 tackles in what was a tremendous game. All the props played strongly with King, Kite and Rose all making more than 100 metres. If our forwards continue to dominate all season as they did during this match the side will be set for big things.

The Sea Eagles only missed nine tackles all night which is quite amazing considering the conditions and their error rate was half that of the Raiders.

The Sea Eagles backs looked dangerous every time they got the ball. Even without Matai and Menzies running out wide the Sea Eagles showed they have great attacking depth.

Jamie Lyon played well and while he was a little patchy at the start he bounced back by scoring two tries and created a number of opportunities.

Matt Orford was lethal with the boot and in fact of Manly’s six tries 4 were scored from Orford’s kicks, one from Travis Burns and the other a solo run by Steve Bell.

There are a number of injury concerns specifically with Orford, Matai and Menzies but Coach Des Hasler was confident they would be right for next week as would Anthony Watmough, who was rested as a precaution.

It is just the result the Sea Eagles needed to kick off the season. They now sit top of the table with 3 games remaining this weekend.

Manly Sea Eagles 32 (Lyon 2, Robertson, Williamson, Bell, King tries; Orford goal) d. Canberra Raiders 6 (Chalk try; Dobson goal) at Brookvale Oval

Penalties: Raiders 6-5

Referee: Ben Cummins

Warriors upstage sloppy Eels - 34-18
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The New Zealand Warriors have opened their account for 2007 with an impressive win over the Parramatta Eels in Auckland. The Warriors started strongly and totally outplayed the Eels in the first half, going into half time with a 24-0 lead. It was the only first time in 5 years the NZ club has won it's opening game, and supporters will be excited about the prospects for 07.

The first stanza saw a near 80% possession advantage to the Warriors and they didn't miss the chance to convert this to points. The Warriors running in three early tries, including a soft on-line try by captain Steve Price to simply embaress the Eels in the early passage of the game.

The Warriors new signings Michael Crockett and Michael Witt looked dangerous with every touch of the ball, but it was new buy and ex-Eel Wade Mckinnon that set the game alight.

McKinnon must have had teflon on him, as no Parramatta could put him to ground. McKinnon in one passage beat up to 6 Parramatta defenders in a 65 metre down field run. The Eels were relieved to get into the sheds for the half time break, even the little possession they received in the first stanza was punctuated by dropped balls, embarrassingly forward passes and shocking discipline.

One particular pass from Eels pivot Brett Finch went so far forward it landed in the the hands of Tony Martin in the Warriors defensive line. For the Warriors the half-time break was an interruption to their merciless on-slaught, the NZ team was unlucky not to have pocketed 2 more tries in a classy first period.

They completed at near 90% and structured some nice attacking moves and looked fluid with the ball and rock solid in defence. Hagans call for the Eels to win the ruck in the 2nd half must have been taken on-board by his troops, as the Eels began to slow the Warriors down and mount some attack of their own.

Early points came in the form of 2 tries and suddenly the game became a contest. As the possession tables turned, the Warriors became frustrated and gave away several silly penalties of their own - and invited the Eels to mount a charge.

Such was the turn, the Eels were suddenly on the good side of the penalty count and went from a tackle count 70 higher than the Warriors to a count 20 less. The Eels still couldn't improve on 73% completion and the Warriors were good enough to close out the game with several late tries.

The Warriors capped a nice performance with a late try to Michael Crockett which will have them crowing with confidence going into the Broncos game next week. It's back to the white board for the Eels, with their new halves combination still having a lot of work to do and concern over injuries to centre Ben Smith and forward Fui Fui Moi Moi and for the Warriors a late injury concern for Vinnie Anderson who had his ankle twisted badly in a tackle on Cayless.

As the 3rd NRL game for 2007, both the Warriors and Eels will need to lift for next week - as the quality of these sides was far less than we saw in last nights matches involving: Tigers, Storm, Cowboys and Broncos.

At Mt Smart Stadium, Auckland:
Vodafone Warriors 34 (Michael Crockett 2, Wade McKinnon, Steve Price, Simon Mannering, Lance Hohaia tries; Tony Martin 4 conversions, penalty).
Parramatta Eels 18 (Daniel Wagon, Nathan Cayless, Jarryd Hayne tries; Luke Burt 3 conversions).
Halftime: 24-0 Vodafone Warriors.
Referee: Gavin Badger.
Crowd: 13,587.

Cowboys eclipse Broncos in Suncorp Thriller
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Last years premiers the Brisbane Broncos went down to the North Queensland Cowboys 23 to 16 tonigh at Suncorp in front of 50,400 fans.

In an impressive affair, both sides went hammer and tong from the first whistle. Set plays, inside balls and stylish attack was evident - with execution that was simply amazing for Round 1 NRL.

The game had a lot of feeling as the local Queensland Derby always has, and big hits were evident from the outset.

The Cowboys started the better, with 2 early tries to centre Ashley Graham. New buy Jason Smith was slick in attack and worked wonders with Thurston, the new combination looking dangerous on every play and the Cowboys now have many options on both sides of the play the ball.

Jason Smith was caught out in defence a few times, his first misread leading to the Broncos early try - with Dane Carlaw hitting a short no look pass from Berrigan at dummy half to charge over from 5 metres.

The Bronocs experiment with Karmichael Hunt at Half seems to be a smart one, with the Kiwi star looks comfortable in both attack and defence. His development in the role and combination with Lockyer will reap dividends as the season continues.

The Broncos young guns jumped to life in the second half and quick fire tries to Karmichael Hunt and Joel Moon saw the game locked at 16 all.

Both sides had chances to nail a field goal, but it was the Cowboys who scored last with 5 minutes to go. Matt Bowen latching on to an inside ball and stepping Karmichael Hunt beautifully to score untouched.

Bowen capped a blinder of a match for himself with a late field goal to ensure the result.

Tonights 2nd NRL game was played at blinding pace and at a high skill level. Buckle up for big ride in 2007, as these two heavyweights put on a classy show.

In injury worries for both sides, Lockyer may have damaged his ankle and the result won't be known until tomorrow. Corey Parker also sprained his wrist and will be out for at least 6 weeks. For the Cowboys, a calf problem for Luke O'Donnell with be monitored and Steve Southern injured his shoulder in a first half tackle - both will be assesed tomorrow.

North QLD Cowboys 23 (Ashley Graham 2, Mark Henry, Matt Bowen tries; Johnathan Thurston 3 goals, Matt Bowen field goal)
Defeated
Brisbane Broncos 16 (Dane Carlaw, Karmichael Hunt, Joel Moon tries; Darren Lockyer 2 goals)
At Suncorp Stadium
Crowd – 50,416
Referee – Steve Clark