Here are the key numbers and quirky stats from Round 10 of the 2017 NRL Telstra Premiership season.
Slow and steady wins the race
They were booed off at half-time by their fans, and then treated like royalty at the full-time whistle. Rugby league; it's a funny game. Penrith were diabolical in the first half against the Warriors, with no one giving them any hope of fighting back from 28-6 down. It goes to show how much we know. Someone – I'm not going to name names – tweeted the Panthers had recovered from 20-6 down at half-time against the Warriors in 2009 to salvage a 32-all draw, but no one could have predicted the second-half onslaught that saw the mountain men run in 30 unanswered points to record their third win of the season. It was their second-largest comeback – only bettered by their 23-point salvage job against the Wests Tigers in 2000 – and the eighth biggest in NRL history. It was also the largest lead the Warriors had let slip.
Panthers trailed Warriors 20-6 at HT in 2009 and salvaged a 32-all draw. Still hope? #NRLPanthersWarriors
— Martin Gabor (@MartinJGabor) May 13, 2017
Scoreless first-halves no issue for the Broncos
The Broncos showed why they have been tipped by some to go all the way in 2017 with a stirring comeback win over the Sea Eagles that saw them erase a 14-0 half-time deficit to snatch a 10-point victory at Suncorp Stadium. It's not often a side is held scoreless at the break and manages to win, but it's not foreign territory for the Broncos. In Round 2, 2015, they came back from 2-0 down to beat the Sharks on the road. In Round 1, 2012, they erased a 6-0 half-time deficit to beat the Eels 18-6 in Parramatta. The last time they achieved the feat at home was in Round 26, 2012 when they came back from 6-0 down to beat Penrith 19-12.
Storm unwillingly enter the record books
Where do you begin to dissect what happened in the first game of the Suncorp double-header that saw the Titans stun Melbourne 38-36? For starters, it was the equal-highest losing score in history, matching the Mariners (1997), Bulldogs (2005) and Knights (2010). Interestingly, that last result also featured the Titans who just so happened to claim a 38-36 win in Newcastle. Gold Coast's 38 points were the most Melbourne had conceded since the Bulldogs beat them 40-12 in 2014, and it was also the first time since their inaugural game at Suncorp they had allowed more than 30 points at the venue.
Don't mess with the Hess
Coen Hess's try-scoring rate is getting out of hand after the young Cowboy bagged a double against the Bulldogs to take his tally to eight tries from 10 matches in 2017. He has claimed three doubles already this year – two of those from the bench – and sits atop the try-scoring leaderboard alongside fellow right-edge players James Roberts, Jordan Rapana, Suliasi Vunivalu and David Fusitu'a.
Kogarah hoodoo cracked
It's not the biggest hoodoo going around, but Cronulla ended a decade-long drought to claim their first win at UOW Jubilee Oval since 2007. Following four-straight losses at the venue, the Sharks stormed home late to claim a four-point win over their local rivals; the same margin as the win 10 years ago.
(4-2) x (8+9) = success
There's a simple formula the Knights need to follow if they want to win more games; score 34 points. That has been their tally in wins over the Titans and Raiders this season, while there were 34 total points scored in their sole win last year over the Tigers.
The NYC registered a win over the @nthqldcowboys and score a try in the first 15 seconds of the match.
— NRL Bulldogs (@NRL_Bulldogs) May 15, 2017
WATCH: https://t.co/dMviVWa6ki pic.twitter.com/HxVZLLzs0C
Blink and you missed it
Just when you thought you'd seen everything in rugby league, the Holden Cup throws up something out of this world. The quickest try in NRL history is 34 seconds, a mark Warriors hooker Eiden Ackland smashed in Round 9 when he crossed after 26 seconds. It took two weeks for someone to top that, with NYC Bulldogs winger Kiko Manu touching down after 15 seconds courtesy of an inexplicable error by the Cowboys who tried an expansive shift from the kick-off.
