Broncos edge thriller against Bulldogs to win second straight
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Brisbane have edged a low-scoring thriller against Canterbury, taking out a 16-10 win at Accor Stadium despite plenty of late scares from a desperate Bulldogs outfit.
A Matt Burton skyscraper forced an error from Tesi Niu, with Braidon Burns showing great individual strength in the ensuing set to push through Herbie Farnworth and Corey Oates to open the scoring 10 minutes in.
The Broncos replied through Corey Oates, with a brilliant Albert Kelly chip over Jayden Okunbor proving near impossible to defend, with the 4-all scoreline holding through to half time.
Jeremy Marshall-King created a line break for Braidon Burns early in the second half and backed up a couple of plays later to scoot from dummy half and put his side up 10-4.
Herbie Farnworth drew his side level with a clever steal on Burns and ran away to score before Adam Reynolds looked to have provided the game-breaking play on three-quarter time with a between-the-legs pass from dummy half setting up a Kotoni Staggs try but the centre lost it in the grounding.
The Broncos didn't have to wait long to claim the lead with Farnworth nabbing his second off a scrum play in the 65th minute to make it 16-0.
Brisbane had to absord a stack of pressure in the final 10 minutes but held on for their second win of the season.
Match: Bulldogs v Broncos
Round 2 -
home Team
Bulldogs
11th Position
away Team
Broncos
3rd Position
Venue: Accor Stadium, Sydney
Match snapshot
- Recruit Matt Burton was more involved than in round one, proving a constant threat with his running and kicking games in particular, forcing errors from the Brisbane backs with his towering bombs and going agonisingly close to his first try in blue and white when held up in the first half.
- Tevita Panga jnr was a man on a mission against his former club, heavily involved early with some potent runs and tackles with a couple of handy offloads. He did find himself on report for contact on the kicker for an early challenge on Adam Reynolds.
- Corey Oates scored his 100th career try, drawing level with club legend Allan Langer.
- Josh Addo-Carr had a relatively quiet game on the stats sheet but was anything but in a literal sense, loudly firing up his teammates at every opportunity and celebrating even the tiniest of wins as if it were a premiership-deciding moment.
- Reynolds proved a steadying influence in his first game for his new club, with his reliable kicking game important. He was unlucky that an uncharacteristic piece of improvisation didn't come off when Kotoni Staggs dropped his between-the-legs pass for a potential try.
- Farnworth was one of his side's best, coming up with two tries and some game-turning plays and finishing with more than 250 running metres.
Play of the game
With his side trailing 10-4 in the second half, Brisbane centre Herbie Farnworth came up with a clever steal on Braidon Burns and stepped around Jayden Oknbor to run away and level up the scores, giving them the impetus to go on and claim the win.
Farnworth turns defence into attack
"It was a good game. We picked up from where we were last week in terms of effort and attitude and our defensive resolve was really good. We left a lot of tries out there … (we needed) just a little bit of finesse on our edges." – Bulldogs coach Trent Barrett.
"There's a real care factor out there amongst each other that we haven’t seen at this club for a while and makes me as a coach feel really proud that they're a tight group and they're showing up for each other." – Brisbane coach Kevin Walters.
NRL Press Conference: Bulldogs v Broncos - Round 2, 2022
What's next
The Bulldogs play their third straight Sunday evening game when they head to Sydney's northern beaches in round three to take on a Manly side stung by two heavy losses to start their campaign, with both coaches taking on their former club.
The Broncos rekindle their Queensland rivalry against the Cowboys in the Sunday 4pm game at Suncorp Stadium. The Cowboys will be riding high after their big win over Canberra in round two while Brisbane are shooting for a third straight win to start season 2022.
