A fired-up Wests Tigers outfit roughed up Lachie Galvin in his first game against them and stuffed up Canterbury’s chance to jump into top spot on the NRL ladder.
The Tigers produced their best performance for the season in mudbath conditions at CommBank Stadium to upset the Bulldogs 28-14.
Galvin was warmly embraced by his old teammates after the full-time siren, including co-captain Jarome Luai who had taunted him on social media during his messy split, but that was in stark contrast to the frosty reception he received during the spiteful clash on the field and from his disgruntled former fans in the grandstand.
Later in the afternoon, Cronulla gave their hopes of a late surge into the top four a boost by polishing off a pathetic Cowboys side 32-12 to be just two points off the Warriors with five rounds remaining.
1. Galvin booed by fans, targeted by old mates
All the talk in the lead-up to the match was about Galvin locking horns with his old teammates after leaving the Tigers in an acrimonious mid-season split.
Benji Marshall said during the week that Wests Tigers fans were entitled to boo Galvin and they did so whenever he touched the ball.
When he conceded an early penalty after a tackle on Jarome Luai, his former halves partner gave him a gobful.
Unlike his social media post when Galvin said he was leaving the club, there was no doubt Luai was venting great vengeance and furious anger.
Lachlan Galvin. (Photo by Mark Evans/Getty Images)
Galvin looked rattled throughout the contest as Canterbury were bustled off their game by the lowly Tigers.
Marshall said the Galvin sideshow was not on the Tigers’ minds.
“All week everyone made it about him but for us it was never about him. It was about our club playing against the Bulldogs, they’re a top-four team,” he said. “To put in that performance today was big for the whole club.”
Luai insisted there was no ill feeling towards Galvin.
“That’s footy bro, I’m a competitor,” he said. “It doesn’t really matter who’s on the other side. It’s brothers and opposition, that’s how I see it.”
Bulldogs coach Cameron Ciraldo said Galvin was in a tough position with his team being outplayed for the most part.
“I don’t think it (the booing) rattled him that much. It’s just, we got beaten as a team,” he said. “Not great conditions for a halfback when you’re behind a beaten forward pack. I thought he tried hard.”
2. Late switch pays dividends
Marshall switched Adam Doueihi to half from lock to get their attack firing and with Jahream Bula returning from a torn hamstring, the Tigers were a class above the Dogs.
“I thought he was probably our best player today. I thought we needed a bit of experience there,” Marshall said.
“It helped everyone be able to do their job better today, including Jarome. I thought Adam was outstanding.”
Wests drew first blood after absorbing plenty of Bulldogs attacking forays when Jeral Skelton touched down in the corner after offloads from Doueihi and Bula.
Doueihi then scooted clear for a long-range break so Bula could sprint away for a 10-0 lead by the midpoint of the first half.
With the Dogs continually coughing up the pill like it was all-wormer medication, the Tigers capitalised on their territorial advantage when Skelton pounced on an Api Koroisau grubber for a 14-point buffer.
Doueihi collected a Matt Burton fumble and outran the cover defence on an 85-metre surge to go 20-0 up over a team 11 rungs higher than them on the ladder.
The Tigers opened the Doggy door with a careless fumble which led to Jacob Preston narrowing the gap to 16 just before half-time.
Jacob Kiraz slid over to make the Tigers nervous at 20-8 and a couple of Alex Seyfarth brain farths gave the Bulldogs possession via a dopey penalty and a one-man advantage when he was sin-binned for a high shot on Harry Hayes.
3. Crichton lucky to dodge sin bin
Bulldogs skipper Stephen Crichton was lucky not to join Seyfarth in a 10-minute time-out late in the contest.
There was an impromptu Panthers reunion when Crichton clocked Taylan May as he stumbled into contact with Koroisau barking at his old teammate as Luai, Matt Burton, Brent Naden and Viliame Kikau rushed in with Ciraldo watching on from the coach’s box.
Doueihi’s ensuing penalty goal put Wests out by more than two converted tries but May was ruled out with category-one as Crichton was spared the bin by referee Wyatt Raymond due to the “mitigating circumstances” of his opponent dropping dramatically as he slipped over.
“The game needs to sort that out. Taylan May gone from the field but Stephen Crichton stays on,” said Cooper Cronk on Fox League.
Karma ran over the Dogs a short time later when Crichton broke free but his pass to Galvin dribbled over the sideline to the delight of Tigers fans.
Samuela Fainu barged through off a questionable Luai pass to seal the boilover result which keeps the Tigers’ minute finals hopes still alive, sitting six points off eighth spot with five rounds remaining.
Josh Curran got a consolation try in his 100th NRL game with the Dogs dropping to third behind Melbourne on a day when they could have leapfrogged Canberra into first.
The Crichton incident is a tricky one for the match officials. There was little intent in the tackle and May clearly slipped so the referee was right to say there were mitigating factors.
But the Tigers were disadvantaged because May had to be replaced, yet Crichton will only be punished more so than the penalty if he gets charged by the match review committee, even then it’s likely to just attract a low-grade and a fine.
4. Sharks lurking after fourth straight win
After a lacklustre two-point win over Souths last weekend, Cronulla needed to regain some attacking bite.
And that was certainly the case in the first half as they ran in four unanswered tries on the back of Addin Fonua-Blake tearing the tackle-shy Cowboys to shreds through the middle.
AFB bagged a try of his own and Ronaldo Mulitalo added two after Braydon Trindall started the cakewalk when he won the race to a nifty Blayke Brailey kick.
Still seventh despite winning four in a row, they are now just two points behind the fading Warriors in fourth and with the Dragons, Titans, the bye and the Knights on the horizon before they meet Canterbury in the final round, finishing in the top half of the playoff bracket is not beyond them.
Griffin Neame, one of the few Cowboys to have a dig on Sunday, reduced the deficit to 20 early in the second half but after Cameron McInnes countered on the hour mark and Tom Dearden was sin-binned for a professional foul, Braidon Burns completed the scoring to make the final result slightly less embarrassing for the visitors.
The Sharks were happy to run out the clock for most of the second half as they improved to a 12-8 record.
5. Cowboys sink to new low
North Queensland trailed 26-0 at half-time. They were lucky the Sharks were only 26 and they barely deserved to be on nil.
“It doesn’t happen very often in the NRL where a team makes it obvious that they don’t want to be here. But that is the Cowboys this afternoon,” said straight-shooting Panthers legend Greg Alexander.
“They are here in body but not in spirit. This is the worst performance I’ve seen from any side this year.”
He was not wrong. They had completed just six from 14 sets in first half.
It was the kind of performance that comes from a team that has given up on the season and their coach. They are now 13th, seven points adrift of the eight and their main goal now needs to be avoiding the wooden spoon, just three points clear of Souths.
Whether Todd Payten lasts the season depends on the boardroom but there needs to be a fresh start next year and whoever takes over as coach faces a mammoth task to get the roster in order and revive the long-lost spirit that used to typify this club.
The Cowboys need to bring in the Germans who bought Springfield Nuclear Power Plant briefly from Monty Burns to review the roster.
The Cowboys would like to advise that the following staff members are earning their keep, which we shall read in alphabetical order. Dearden, Tom. That is all.
The Kick: Doueihi deserves decent deal
On the back of the Galvin and Da Silva departures, you would think the Tigers would be keen to keep every local junior at the club.
Doueihi has been offered a two-year contract by the Dragons but the Tigers have dished up just one at the negotiating table.
New administration, same old mistakes by the NRL’s ongoing basket case.
Not just someone who is able to excel in the halves, lock, centre, fullback and hooker, Doueihi is the heart and soul of a team that has sadly lacked both intangible elements.
After they had slackened off a smidgeon just before half-time to concede a try to Canterbury, he laid down the law to the team before they went into the sheds.
“Adam Doueihi has been the best player on the field by a country mile,” said Cooper Cronk on Fox League.
“Just when his coach needed someone to stand up, he has delivered.”
Greg Alexander added: “Adam Doueihi has some highlight moments that would rival anyone’s highlight moments this year. Apart from those big moments he’s been outstanding for them.”
You shouldn’t have to be a premiership-winning halfback to be able to see Doueihi should be offered a contract extension that reflects his immense value to the Tigers.
with AAP