The St George Illawarra Dragons host the Brisbane Broncos tonight with both teams keen to fire in attack after producing disappointing performances with the football last week. Join us for live scores and commentary from 8.00pm AEDT.
St George Illawarra and Brisbane were both comprehensively outplayed by Melbourne and Manly respectively and need to improve considerably if they are to be a force in the NRL this season.
The Dragons tried hard last week but severely lacked the attacking class to trouble a Storm outfit that cantered to a 20-point win.
Brisbane themselves were also outplayed by Manly, and fell away badly from the moment they went behind in the second half.
In short, the offensive play of the Dragons and Broncos left a lot to be desired last week so it would not surprise to see both teams play out a low scoring encounter tonight.
Prediction
The Dragons at home will have an obligation to play more attacking football in front of their fans, especially after last week’s passive performance against Melbourne.
Nathan Fien in particular needs to improve his kicking game tenfold after producing more rocks than diamonds with his effort last week.
Fien had a match to forget against Melbourne, with the majority of his attacking grubber kicks either going dead in-goal or resulting in a try to the opposition.
Halves partner Jamie Soward wasn’t as bad, but the former NSW Origin player still failed to get himself involved on a more regular basis in attack despite scoring an intercept try.
For the Dragons to score points this season, Soward is going to have to play well and take risks in attack. He certainly has the speed and talent to do so, especially when he pulls off those chip kicks in the middle of park.
Fien and Soward also need to get Brett Morris more involved in attack. The Origin and Test winger is one of the NRL’s best attacking talents and needs to get his hands in possession on a regular basis if the Dragons hope to open Brisbane up tonight.
The Broncos meanwhile will need Justin Hodges firing on all fronts. The Queensland centre was the only player that looked like opening Manly up last week and did so with two try assists.
If the Dragons can shut Hodges down, the Broncos attack will effectively go blunt, and it remains to be seen if halves Peter Wallace and Scott Prince possess the attacking class necessary to score against a Dragons unit that invariably play well at home.
Dragons by six.
Adam
Roar Guru
Defence was outstanding, especially in the first half, but jeez, any other team would have put Brisbane to the sword in that second half -- they looked absolutely exhausted around the 60-minute mark. Long year ahead for the Dragons!
Matt
Guest
Wow Dragons! God it's going to be a long year for their supporters, how much possession do they need to score a few tries? It was 35 sets to 25 sets last stat I saw, and they still lost.
Alan
Roar Guru
Well the Dragons certainly managed to dominate large parts of the encounter against Brisbane tonight. Unfortunetly for them, they just didn't do enough with the football to convert pressure into points. The Broncos though looked far more threatening in attack despite not dominating possession and got their just rewards on the scoreboard with Stagg, Hoffman, Norman and Hannant all scoring tries. Wallace and Prince were organised in the halves while Brisbane's forwards did the job big time in defence. McCullough was very solid at dummy-half. Great win for the Broncos but the Dragons really need to spark things in attack if they are a chance of winning any matches this year, let alone making the eight. Thank you for your company tonight and join us for Saturday NRL on The Roar Dragons 6 Broncos 22
Kellett_1992
Guest
Good work Broncos.
Alan
Roar Guru
80' - Wallace with a kick now and he finds touch and that's all she wrote here. Great win for the Broncos! FULLTIME: Dragons 6 Broncos 22
Alan
Roar Guru
78' - This loss will hurt the Dragons after dominating large parts of the encounter tonight. Fien with a bomb now and Maranta takes the ball very well on the full after going high. Dragons 6 Broncos 22
Alan
Roar Guru
77' - Wallace, Norman, Prince and McCullough very solid tonight for Brisbane in a tough contest. This is a really good win for the Broncos so early in the season. Gillett nearly breaks through here but is shut down just in time. Prince with a grubber now but the football goes dead Dragons 6 Broncos 22
Alan
Roar Guru
76' - Penalty to the Broncos now after the Dragons short kickoff did not go ten metres. Broncos could finish with a flourish now after such a grinding contest Dragons 6 Broncos 22
Alan
Roar Guru
CONVERSION SUCCESSFUL - Prince converts very well and its game over now! Dragons 6 Broncos 22 Broncos deserve this victory. The Dragons have really offered nothing in attack tonight and have a lot to work on with the football. Brisbane, like the Bulldogs, just too good with the football when it counted.
Alan
Roar Guru
TRY BRONCOS - Great second phase play from the Broncos and Norman scores out wide and Brisbane have been by far the better team in attack despite not doing most of the attacking tonight Dragons 6 Broncos 20
Alan
Roar Guru
72' - Soward with an attempted chip kick but the Broncos regather yet again and Brisbane are finishing the stronger here as they attack Dragons 6 Broncos 16
Alan
Roar Guru
72' - Wallace with a bomb now and Nightingale regathers well on the full despite attention from Reed. Dragons need a spark here though Dragons 6 Broncos 16
Alan
Roar Guru
71' - Fien tries to find Morris with the chip kick but Gillett reads the situation well and the Broncos continue to hold out here in defence Dragons 6 Broncos 16
Alan
Roar Guru
70' - Great set of six from Brisbane here and now they are in an attacking position. Wallace with a bomb now and Nightingale bats the ball back luckily and Beale takes the tackle Dragons 6 Broncos 16
Alan
Roar Guru
69' - Weyman loses the football now and the Broncos continue to have all the answers in defence here as Norman makes good yardage Dragons 6 Broncos 16
Alan
Roar Guru
68' - Merrin knocks on but the Dragons win the penalty and the Broncos will have to defend yet again. Dragons must score here to get the crowd in this! Dragons 6 Broncos 16
Alan
Roar Guru
67' - Broncos with a great set here as Prince goes high but Beale regathers well and Morris now is away! Dragon with great counter attack Dragons 6 Broncos 16
Alan
Roar Guru
Dragons need to score 12 points to win this and have not looked like scoring a try tonight. They are under the pump big time now the home side. Dragons 6 Broncos 16
Alan
Roar Guru
CONVERSION SUCCESSFUL - Prince converts and the Broncos well on their way to a very gutsy win here away from home. Dragons 6 Broncos 16
Alan
Roar Guru
TRY BRONCOS - Wallace with a great short ball to Stagg who scores a huge try against the run of play! Dragons 6 Broncos 14