St George Illawarra snuck in a victory against Manly after a seesawing battle at Brookvale Oval last night.
Trailing 18-14 with five minutes remaining, centre Josh Morris used clever footwork to send a pass to twin Brett Morris who crashed over for the winning try. Jamie Soward’s conversion sealed the two point win.
The Dragons scored four tries to three in their 20-18 victory, causing an upset which ended Manly’s five game winning streak.
After trailing 12-10 at half time, the Dragons regained the lead in the second half after being awarded a controversial benefit of the doubt try by video referee Phil Cooley in the 54th minute. Cooley saw no evidence that Winger Jason Nightingale and second-rower Lagi Setu’s multiple touches constituted a knock-on after gathering a Soward cross-field bomb. He awarded the try, putting the dragons infront 14-10.
It wasn’t long before Manly hit the front again. After a series of penalties against the Dragons, Manly were given ideal field position which they turned into points after winger Micheal Robertson grabbed an Orford grubber. They were denied a try by Cooley three minutes later after he ruled Brett Stewart failed to ground a Robertson grubber.
The Dragons went into the match without NSW centre Matt Cooper who suffered a minor back injury after the State of Origin clash Wednesday night.
The victory provided joy amongst both the players and the fans, both with a new bout of confidence heading into next weeks match with the South Sydney Rabbitohs. It also improved their position on the ladder.
Fans hope to see more victories in the coming weeks. As local supporter Elissa Pacetta stated:
Hopefully the boys can string a few more wins together and claim their spot in the top eight.
0 Responses to “Dragons snare two points with late try.”