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Broncos
18
Match Complete
Dragons
48
| 80 |  | Z. Lomax | ||
| 79 |  | M. Dufty | ||
| 74 |  | Z. Lomax | ||
| 70 | | Z. Lomax | ||
| 69 | | L. Leilua | ||
| K. Nikorima | | 56 | ||
| D. Boyd | | 53 | ||
| 50 | | G. Widdop | ||
| 48 | | T. Lafai | ||
| 39 | | G. Widdop | ||
| 38 | | G. Widdop | ||
| 36 | | T. Sims | ||
| 34 | | G. Widdop | ||
| 32 | | T. Sims | ||
| 28 | | G. Widdop | ||
| 27 | | L. A. Mau | ||
| 21 | | G. Widdop | ||
| 19 | | T. Sims | ||
| J. Isaako | | 18 | ||
| D. Fifita | | 16 | ||
| J. Isaako | | 15 | ||
| J. Isaako | | 9 | ||
| 4 | | G. Widdop |
| 3 | Tries | 7 | ||
| 1 | Conversions | 7 | ||
| 2 | Penalty Goals | 3 | ||
| 0 | Field Goals | 0 |
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After surging into the finals off the back of three-straight wins, the Brisbane Broncos will look to keep their premiership hopes alive in a do-or-die clash with the heavily criticised St George Illawarra Dragons. Join The Roar for live scores and coverage from 4:10pm (AEST).
There’s no team heading into the finals in better form than the Brisbane Broncos. After comfortable victories over two premiership heavyweights in the Rabbitohs and Roosters, Wayne Bennett’s men put Manly to the sword with a resounding 48-16 win last week.
The victory saw them climb into sixth spot on the ladder to earn a home final this week at Suncorp Stadium, where they have not lost in their last seven finals games.
All that should be holding the Broncos back from progressing through to a semi-final with the Rabbitohs is complacency.
They welcome back hooker Andrew McCullough, with rookie Jake Turpin out of the side. Experienced forward Alex Glenn has succumbed to a calf injury and is replaced in the starting side by David Fifita.
Kotoni Staggs looks likely to come onto the bench as he did last week against Manly.
While recent form lines suggest that the Dragons will be bundled out of the finals, stranger things have happened in 2018. And perhaps having absolutely no expectations suits Paul McGregor’s men, who crumbled during the regular season as they failed to deal with external noise.
The Dragons earned a much-needed 24-14 win over the Knights last week but will need to be far better with the ball in hand if they are to topple a confident Brisbane outfit.
Sunday afternoon’s match sees Ben Hunt return to Suncorp for the first time since leaving the club at the end of last year.
The much-maligned halfback has been the scapegoat of the Dragons’ woes in 2018 but it would be one of the great redemption stories of the year if he is to lead the Red V into the semi-finals.
The pressure on Hunt to deliver won’t be nearly as strong this week, with five-eighth Gareth Widdop named to make a timely return from a shoulder injury sustained in the Dragons’ 40-4 defeat to Parramatta a month ago.
Prediction
While the return of Widdop will see the Dragons improve in attack, it won’t mean too much if their big men can’t stop the bruising Brisbane pack. Look for the Broncos to pull away late and book a trip to Sydney next week to take on the Rabbitohs.
Broncos by 14.
Join The Roar as we take you through one of the tightest races for the premiership in recent history. Tune in from 4:10pm (AEST) for live scores and coverage of Sunday afternoon’s game and don’t forget to leave a comment below as the match unfolds.
Kick-off: 4:10pm (AEST)
Venue: Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
TV: Live, Fox League, Nine Network
Online: Live, Foxtel app, Foxtel now, 9Now
Betting: Broncos $1.28, Dragons $3.70
Overall record: Played 38; Broncos 23 wins, Dragons 15 wins
Last meeting: Round 1, Dragons 34 defeated Broncos 12 at Jubilee Oval
Record at venue: The Dragons have lost their last 10 games at Suncorp
Referees: Grant Atkins, Chris Sutton
Brisbane Broncos
1. Darius Boyd 2. Corey Oates 3. James Roberts 4. Jordan Kahu 5. Jamayne Isaako 6. Anthony Milford 7. Kodi Nikorima 8. Matthew Lodge 9. Andrew McCullough 10. Sam Thaiday 17. David Fifita 12. Tevita Pangai Junior 13. Josh Mcguire 14. Patrick Mago 15. Joe Ofahengaue 16. Korbin Sims 18. Kotoni Staggs
St George Illawarra Dragons
1. Matthew Dufty 2. Nene Macdonald 3. Zac Lomax 4. Timoteo Lafai 5. Jordan Pereira 6. Gareth Widdop 7. Ben Hunt 8. James Graham 9. Cameron McInnes 10. Leeson Ah Mau 11. Tyson Frizell 12. Tariq Sims 13. Jack de Belin 14. Jeremy Latimore 15. Kurt Mann 16. Blake Lawrie 17. Luciano Leilua
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