The Bulldogs’ sudden slide has left more questions than answered, while Warriors halfback Luke Metcalf has a rare opportunity to make the most of his final year at the club.
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Plus, the Dolphins have suddenly vaulted into premiership contention — but there is one “concern”.
Read on for the key Talking Points ahead of Round 12.
DOLPHINS SHOOT FOR HISTORY… BUT THERE IS ONE ‘CONCERN’
Raiders v Dolphins, Thursday 6:00pm @ GIO Stadium
The Dolphins might not win their first premiership this season, but it won’t be far away as Kristian Woolf’s side start to realise how good they can actually be in the NRL.
The Dolphins were ruthless and clinical in their 32-10 victory to knock the Rabbitohs out of the top four in Magic Round and showed they could be a smoky to finish the season in that spot.
Woolf’s side has always had the attacking class, but they married that with brutal defence to deny the Rabbitohs, who have been one of the best attacking teams so far this season.
The Dolphins have now scored 104 points while only conceding 32 in three-straight wins. Since they entered the competition, the Dolphins have never gone four consecutive games conceding two tries of fewer.
Matty Johns feels the Dolphins are on track to not only make their first finals appearsance in 2026, but they could finish in the top four.
“The Dolphins are a team that are starting to realise their top four potential,” Johns said on Matty and Cronk.
“I love Max Plath as a player. He is a real hound dog very similar to the way his old man played.
“He scored two tries on the weekend and he was in the mix for Origin and Billy would have been like, show me how much you want to play and it was the best game of his career.”
The Dolphins are a smoky for the title.Source: Getty Images
Cooper Cronk, meanwhile, warned the Dolphins’ young spine members are only going to get better with more experience led by skipper Isaiya Katoa and that is a scary proposition for the Raiders this weekend and the whole of the NRL in the coming years.
“Katoa just keeps getting better and better,” Cronk said. “He learns fast.”
The challenge for the Dolphins has always been putting in consistent performances, particularly in defence and that starts with the Raiders away in Round 12 minus some Origin stars.
However, Johns feels the Dolphins have the nucleus and weapons to go all the way in the near future.
“In the next couple of years there is a title there, you can see it,” Johns said.
Cronk agreed: “With Plath, Katoa, Hammer, Marshall-King, Donoghue, that is your premiership spine there for the Dolphins.”
The Dolphins will be gunning for four-straight wins for the first time in their short history this week against the Raiders and while their recent success may come as a surprise to some, don’t count Michael Ennis as one of them.
The Fox League expert had “enormous expectations” of Woolf’s side this year, convinced that had it not been for a string of injuries last year they would have finally cracked the top eight.
“The strike that they’ve got and the speed and the youth that they’ve got in their back line — it’s as good as any in the competition,” Ennis told foxsports.com.au.
“The great story around Tom Flegler and having Tom Gilbert back and Max Plath back, they’re almost like three new signings that are absolutely world class. You could mount an argument that Gilbert was unlucky not to make the Origin team for Queensland.
“So those three guys are of representative standard. Their pack is smaller but hard working, aggressive and have an ability to be able to ball play and offload as well. I really like where the Dolphins are at.”
The only question mark for Ennis, however, is the health of Kodi Nikorima, who will miss this week’s game with a hamstring injury. Nikorima also missed time with a hamstring issue last year and Ennis said he needs to stay healthy if the Dolphins are to make noise in September.
“I just think Nikorima is such a big one and I feel like he’s a vital piece of their premiership threat this year and the hamstring injuries are a concern,” Ennis said.
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THE ‘VICIOUS CYCLE’ THAT HAS BULLDOGS SLIDING DOWN THE LADDER
Bulldogs v Storm, Friday 8:00pm @ Accor Stadium
The Bulldogs have gone from leading the competition this time last year to losing seven of their last eight games to sit in the bottom four one year later.
Their last start 38-16 loss to the Sharks shows just how far this side has fallen, and one moment in particular has club great Michael Ennis concerned.
It was described in commentary was the “worst moment” of the Bulldogs’ season, when Sharks hooker Hohepa Puru beat four or five lackadaisical defenders on his way to the try-line.
“We haven’t seen that from Canterbury,” Ennis told foxsports.com.au.
Unfortunately for the Bulldogs, while that moment was particularly poor it is just one of many examples which speak to how this once resolute defensive unit has started to crumble.
While all the talk was about improving the attack, the one thing the Bulldogs used to be able to hang their hat on was their defence. But now that isn’t even the case anymore.
For Ennis, it doesn’t necessarily come from a lack of effort but the Bulldogs turning into a team of desperate individuals trying to fix things themselves.
The problem with that approach is that it has often led to miscommunication in defence.
“There was a linebreak the week before against the Dolphins when I think it was Connelly Lemuelu, he steamed into the backfield, Stephen Crichton was jamming infield almost near the posts from right centre,” Ennis recalled.
“It now looks like individuals are trying to solve themselves because they just want it and that’s just because they want to do well — they want to win.
“Individuals trying to to solve problems themselves whereas together the Bulldogs were brilliant as a team and played a real team-first style of football for a couple of years.
“But that happens when you lose confidence and you’re trying to search for answers to win… those individuals can then start to try and turn that momentum individually themselves but it can quickly cause more harm than good.”
Ennis, like many people, entered the 2026 season quietly confident that the Bulldogs could take the next step towards becoming genuine premiership contenders.
While their season unravelled quickly in the finals last year, the hope was that this season would be different with Lachlan Galvin getting a full pre-season under his belt.
The Bulldogs spine is not working.Source: Getty Images
The signing of Leo Thompson was also supposed to address the lack of a “real dominant forward through the middle” as Ennis put it.
But Thompson was on the backfoot from the start after suffering an injury during Maori All Stars pre-season camp, and hasn’t had the expected impact since making his Bulldogs debut.
Optimistic Bulldogs fans will point towards the win over Penrith as proof that they can turn the current slump around. But the unfortunate reality is that this current team looks a shadow of the one that stunned Ivan Cleary’s side that night.
“The Dogs won that game against Penrith in two elements,” Ennis said.
“They won it through emotion. You could tell that they were clearly up to play against Penrith and that no one gave them a chance and at home they made a real statement.
“Defensively they were taking a lot of time off Clary and frustrated them into uncharacteristic errors and really won the game with their defence.
“That’s the second part of it and that’s where the Bulldogs under Cameron Ciraldo have built the success that they’ve had over the last 18 months or so — this brutal, fast-moving defensive line that’s frustrated oppositions, worn them down and then they’ve been able to put points on through fatigue in the opposition.
“I don’t know where it’s gone. The defences has really fallen away. Confidence looks extremely low and it’s very much a cycle when you’re attacking well you tend to defend well. “When you’re defending well you tend to, as I said, frustrate the opposition and then you wear them down and then all of a sudden your attack finds its flow and unfortunately that vicious cycle happens when you’re not defending well.
“You start to not attack well and that’s where they’re lacking confidence on both sides of the footy now and that’s a real concern.”
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Dean Ritchie calls out Dogs hierarchy! | 06:15
WHY THIS YEAR IS DIFFERENT FOR THE WARRIORS
Dragons v Warriors, Saturday 5:30pm @ Jubilee Stadium
The Warriors’ bid for a maiden title took a huge hit with halfback Tannah Boyd rubbed out for the season with an ACL injury.
But Cooper Cronk still feels they can go the distance — and he isn’t the only one.
For most teams, losing their starting halfback is a death sentence to their title hopes. They are written off as top four hopes let a lone premiership winners, but the fact Boyd was replacing a first-choice halfback in the first place means the Warriors are well placed to fill the void.
While Dragons bound playmaker Luke Metcalf will not return to the side this week, he will come into calculations in the coming weeks, but Te Maire Martin’s starring display against the Broncos in Magic Round speaks to just how spoiled for depth the Warriors are.
“They are not sneaky anymore, they are very much a premiership threat,” Cronk said on Matty and Cronk.
“If the Panthers were not so good and consistent, there would be a lot more noise about the Warriors.
“They are very close to premiership favourites next to the Panthers.”
Matty Johns agreed that the Warriors are starting to distance themselves from the chasing pack and are right up alongside the Panthers.
“I agree with you and the support they had at the ground was like a Warriors home game, it was just electrifying the support behind them,” Johns said.
“And it was such a brutal performance they put on. They save those type of performances very often for Brisbane. There is a great history between those two clubs.
“They have really turned it on against the Broncos over the years and that was one of them. I was speaking to Pat Carrigan and he was seriously knocked around by the Warriors.”
Despite the Boyd blow, foxsports.com.au’s Paul Crawley feels the Warriors can win a title with whoever plays halfback in Andrew Webster’s system.
“I think the Warriors have shown us now that it doesn’t matter who’s playing. The system that Andrew Webster has set up here, it suits them all,” Crawley said on NRL 360.
“Te Maire Martin came on on the weekend and had an instant impact and he just fitted into the system.”
Te Maire Martin stepped up in place of the injured Tannah Boyd to thrash the Broncos.Source: Getty Images
Luke Metcalf was left out of the Warriors’ team for this week, but according to coach Andrew Webster that is because he lacks match fitness.
The Warriors had selflessly left Metcalf out of the NRL side in recent weeks as he sorted out his future, eventually signing on a reported three-year, $2.7 million deal with the Dragons.
Given the team’s hectic travel schedule, it made it hard to get many reps into the soon-to-be Dragons halfback.
It will be interesting to see if Metcalf gets the nod next week even if Martin plays well again on the weekend.
But according to Crawley, Metcalf has the “highest ceiling” of all the players Webster could turn to as Boyd’s replacement.
“It ends any chance that he could have gone early to the Dragons,” Crawley said.
“But it also gives him an opportunity to do what he might never get the chance to do again, which is potentially win a premiership.”
Anasta feels the way the Warriors thrashed the premiers after losing Boyd shows just how far they have come as a team and a club, and given they could get a home final if they finish inside the top two this could finally be the year Webster’s side take the next step.
“It speaks volumes for where the Warriors are at to lose key player like Boyd on the weekend and have Metcalf already out,” Anasta said.
“A lot of people including myself thought they couldn’t win a comp without Metcalf to start the year if he didn’t come back.
“Not only is he not back, but now Boyd’s gone and they go on and win the game the way that they did. They’re the real deal.”
Barnett shuts down Ford speculation | 01:02
FOZBALL HERE TO STAY AS MASTER COACH SET FOR LONG-TERM DEAL
Sea Eagles v Titans, Saturday 7:35pm @ 4 Pines Park
In the history of interim coaches, Kieran Foran just might be the best or at least the most successful after leading the Sea Eagles to six wins from seven starts since taking over in Round 5.
Manly’s winning run rolled on with a ruthless 46-18 demolition of the Tigers in Magic Round and in this form the Titans could be roadkill in Round 12.
Cooper Cronk feels Foran’s Manly reveival has gone from pure emotion to genuine coaching masterclasses in recent weeks and can’t recall a better interim coach in his time.
“For the first couple of weeks it is not Xs and Os with the new coach. It is about inspiration and creating a good environment and these guys are happy,” Cronk said on Matty and Cronk.
“But now it is starting to come through that it is performance based and where Manly were in the first few rounds to what they are now, that is the best turnaround I have seen from a team who has changed coaches to what they are doing now.”
While it would be easy to look at Manly’s results since Foran took over and point the finger at his predecessor, Matty Johns said Anthony Seibold actually deserves at least some credit for the foundations he put in place.
“I think Foran would give some credit to Anthony Seibold,” Johns said.
“There are some coaches that are good to follow behind. I think Seibold has the propensity to over-coach. However, he does educate his players well.
“I think Kieran has come in and just cleared their heads and put some of his own touches on it.
“He’s tinkered with it a little but, he has given them belief and simplified roles.”
Sea Eagles coach Kieran Foran. (Photo by Ian Hitchcock/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images
Now, of course the next question is what is taking the Sea Eagles so long when it comes to locking Foran up as their long-term replacement for Seibold.
Foran is still just coaching on an interim basis, but Code Sports reporter Brent Read revealed on NRL 360 earlier in the week that the two sides are “close” to an agreement.
Foran certainly has the buy-in from the playing group, with Cronk even taking note of the way Manly’s stars have spoken about the premiership-winning five-eighth in interviews.
“The other thing is how they speak about him,” Cronk said.
“Fogarty, Brooks, Olakau’atu, Jake Trbojevic. He is a very easy man to respect.
“And their is no Turbo in his side either. We all thought Manly’s hopes rely on Turbo, but he hasn’t been there and Kieran Foran has been the guy that has pulled it all together.”
Recently extended skipper Jake Trbojevic sang Foran’s praises on Tuesday when appearing on NRL 360.
“Obviously it has been a great turnaround from the club,” Trbojevic said.
“After the first three games we were very disappointed and since Foz has taken over we have been playing some really good footy, everyone’s confident and it’s been really enjoyable.
“Ever since Foz has taken over it has been great and everyone is confident and we are getting a lot of belief on the back of the great performances.”
Brother Tom, meanwhile, said it best on SEN Radio when he declared he would “speak on behalf of everyone at the club” in saying that “we’d love to have him here”.
What does a huge Origin do for Walker? | 03:19
‘BEST’ WIN UNDER PAYTEN SHOULD HAVE COWBOYS DREAMING BIG
Cowboys v Rabbitohs, Sunday 4:05pm @ Queensland Country Bank Stadium
Few had the Cowboys making the finals in 2026, with Todd Payten fighting for his future after a horror 2025 campaign.
However, the club’s 18-12 win over the Roosters in Magic Round has them on the verge of the top four and dreaming of a first title since 2015.
The Cowboys have always had the attack under Payten, but apart from 2022 their defence hasn’t allowed them to compete for the top four and a premiership.
But they showed against the Roosters they have stepped up in that department after holding out the premiership heavyweights twice when reduced to 12 men due to sin bins to Matt Lodge and Reuben Cotter.
Matty Johns called it a “tremendous” performance given the circumstances, with Tom Dearden and Jason Taumalolo also unavailable, while Cooper Cronk went as far as to declare it “the best performance under Todd Payten”.
The man himself agreed.
“That’s as good a win as I’ve had as head coach at this club in six years,” Payten said post-game.
“It was really composed and gritty. We had 12 men for 20 minutes and everyone turned up, worked hard and found a way. We won it off the back of our defence.”
Now, that isn’t a line usually associated with the Cowboys.
After all, the 18-12 win over the Roosters was the first time they had won scoring less than 20 points since mid-way through 2024.
Payten talks double sin bins vs. Chooks | 04:56
While Payten would have been disappointed the likes of Jake Clifford and Heilum Luki weren’t rewarded with Origin call-ups, it will only benefit the Cowboys in the short-term as they hunt an unlikely top-four berth.
And if they can keep up the defensive resilience they showed against the Roosters and not fall back into bad habits, the Cowboys could be a dark horse come September.
“That is a sign of a really good team when you can stop the opposition from scoring points on multiple ocassions,” Cronk added of the win over the Roosters.
“The other part to it is if you look at what happened to them last week against the Eels, they capitulated in the last five minutes and the game against the Roosters was a ding dong battle down the stretch.
“The ball was in play and there was fatigue everywhere and I was watching thinking given (what happened) last week the Cowboys are going to fall over here.
“But the Cowboys got bigger, faster and stronger in that period.
“When the Cowboys show you how good they are, we all believe and then they show you how bad they are like against Manly and the Eels… I hope for Cowboys fans they can continue going in the right way because they are built a little bit like the Warriors.
“They have got a big, mobile pack and some creative halves and when Purdue and Chester get going with Drinkwater, they are very hard to stop.”
Byes: Broncos, Eels, Knights, Panthers, Roosters, Sharks, Tigers