Both first-up losers as they fielded almost completely revamped rosters from last year, one of the Dragons or Eels will get on the board this weekend while the other will take on a dreaded 0-2 record.
St George Illawarra – who retained just five players from 2023 – were made to pay for a slow start in Round 1 in which they let the Knights get out to a 18-0 lead, but showed plenty of signs of promise in an eventual 32-16 defeat to the defending premiers.
In particular the new halves pairing of Raecene McGregor and rugby sevens convert Tyla Nathan-Wong should be better for the run this week.
The Eels meanwhile established an 8-4 lead at the break against competition newcomers the Wests Tigers before giving up 32 unanswered points to lose 36-8.
Defence will be a major focus this week after they fell off 47 tackles and made 30 ineffective tackles in the loss.
St George Illawarra have won both of the previous meetings with the Eels, while the Dragons are two from two in games at WIN Stadium.
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Team News
Dragons: No late changes after coach Jamie Soward revamped his side following a Round 1 defeat. Wingers Margot Vella and Cortez Te Pou make their NRLW debuts. Taylor Mapusua drops out of the 17 and Shenai Lendill moves from the wing to second row. Roxy Murdoch shifts from second row to prop, which bumps Tara McGrath-West back to be part of a new-look bench that includes debutante Kaarla Cowan.
Eels: A stack of late positional changes, starting in the backline with Casey Tohi-Hiku moving from wing to centre and Monique Donovan coming onto the flank after originally being named on the bench. Talesha Quinn moves from the back row to the front row, with Shontelle Stowers switching into the vacant spot in the second row. Madeline Jones reverts to the bench. Former Jillaroo Nakia Davis-Welsh comes into the 17 after missing Round 1, taking the place of Kyra Simon who is the replacement player.
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Stat Attack
- In two games against the Dragons the Eels are yet to score a single point, losing 10-0 in the 2021 season and 16-0 in 2022.
- After opening the season with a double, Dragons fullback Teagan Berry now has 12 tries in 15 NRLW appearances.
- The Eels have four former Dragons on their roster (Elsie Albert, Mahalia Murphy, Talesha O’Neill and Rachael Pearson.