Injuries headlined the first round of the NRL Telstra Premiership with a number of high profile players set to spend extended time on the sidelines following a dramatic opening week of the season.
Paul Gallen, Blake Austin, Aiden Sezer, Michael Lichaa, James Segeyaro, Ben Henry, Adam Reynolds and John Sutton will all miss matches due to injuries in Round 1.
The NRL bunker was also put through its first official test and came through with flying colours.
Corey Oates starred from the wing as the Broncos easily accounted for a disappointing Eels outfit in Round 1. Kieran Foran was a late scratching and Corey Norman (neck) left the field early after falling awkwardly. Matt Gillett also performed strongly, but the Broncos were rarely troubled.
Norman is expected to be fine for Round 2, as is star recruit Foran.
Brett Stewart was a late scratching, but his involvement may have made no difference as the Bulldogs dominated a Manly outfit that never got going at Brookvale Oval.
Josh Morris scored his 100th try giving he and twin brother Brett the unique honour of becoming the first brothers to notch 100 tries each in first grade.
Chase Stanley (cork, TBA), Michael Lichaa (knee, TBA) were the main injuries to come out of the clash.
Manly players Steve Matai (high tackle) and Martin Taupau (shoulder charge) were both placed on report but were cleared by the match review committee.
Blake Austin started where he left off in 2015, setting up tries then scoring his own with a typical show and go. Aidan Sezer was also in the thick of the action scoring two tries on his club debut, but both star playmakers would succumb to the injury curse and could miss up to six weeks.
Sezer couldn't see out his left eye with a suspected broken cheekbone but bravely stayed on the field to help his team to victory.
Austin (knee) and Sezer (eye socket) will be out until possibly Round 7.
Shaun Fensom sealed the game with a famous 80th minute solo run to cap a memorable game from the hardworking forward.
Panthers hooker James Segeyaro also joined the lengthy injury toll with a suspected broken arm.
A classic tale of two halves in Campbelltown, Wests Tigers jumped out to a 28-6 half-time lead thanks to a wonderful attacking display from 21-year-old Mitchell Moses and his teammates who scored two contenders for try of the year.
The Warriors shot to life in the second half, scoring 20 unanswered points including three tries in eight minutes to close the gap to just two points.
James Tedesco capped a solid performance with a match-winning try at the death, but a potential season-ending injury to young Warrior Ben Henry put a dampener on the entertaining contest.
The defending premiers started their campaign against a very strong Sharks side and snuck home in the final minutes thanks to an impressive individual try to forward Ethan Lowe.
Ben Barba and Jack Bird both played well for the Sharks in an encouraging showing despite the loss.
Paul Gallen (knee) will undergo scans, with the skipper possibly out for an extended period of time.
Sharks interchange forward Chris Heighington could miss one game after being charged by the NRL match review committee for a dangerous throw.
The Rabbitohs showed no mercy against an injury- and suspension-ravaged Roosters outfit racing in 32 unanswered points against their bitter rivals before eventually winning 42-10.
Injuries to halfback Adam Reynolds (jaw, 6 weeks) and forward John Sutton (pec, 16 weeks) may be very costly for the Bunnies though.
Sam Burgess made a solid return to the NRL from a year hiatus, leading his side with 188 metres from 17 carries.
Jake Friend was charged by the match review committee for dangerous contact but can escape suspension with an early guilty plea.
Tyrone Roberts made a successful club debut against his former side as the Titans easily accounted for Newcastle. Greg Bird was in the thick of the action in a roving role, setting up tries and getting through plenty of work.
New Knights forward Pauli Pauli could miss one game after being charged by the NRL match review committee for dangerous contact.
Billy Slater made his much anticipated return to rugby league after missing a majority of the 2015 season through a shoulder injury as the Storm narrowly defeated the Dragons in Monday night football.
The Dragons' experiment with their outside backs may still need work as they were exposed several times on the right edge with Josh Dugan and Euan Aitken struggling to contain Marika Koroibete, who bagged two tries.
The Storm victory means they have now won their opening game of the season 12 times in a row.
Round 1 results
Broncos 17 def Eels 4
Bulldogs 28 def Sea Eagles 6
Raiders 30 def Panthers 22
Wests Tigers 34 def Warriors 26
Cowboys 20 def Sharks 14
Rabbitohs 42 def Roosters 10
Titans 30 def Knights 12
Storm 18 def Dragons 16
Round 1 table
Club | Pld | W | L | +- | Points |
Rabbitohs | 1 | 1 | 0 | 32 | 2 |
Bulldogs | 1 | 1 | 0 | 22 | 2 |
Titans | 1 | 1 | 0 | 18 | 2 |
Broncos | 1 | 1 | 0 | 13 | 2 |
Raiders | 1 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 2 |
Wests Tigers | 1 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 2 |
Cowboys | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 2 |
Storm | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
Dragons | 1 | 0 | 1 | -2 | 0 |
Sharks | 1 | 0 | 1 | -6 | 0 |
Warriors | 1 | 0 | 1 | -8 | 0 |
Panthers | 1 | 0 | 1 | -8 | 0 |
Eels | 1 | 0 | 1 | -13 | 0 |
Knights | 1 | 0 | 1 | -18 | 0 |
Sea Eagles | 1 | 0 | 1 | -22 | 0 |
Roosters | 1 | 0 | 1 | -32 | 0 |
