Sign up now!!!<\/a><\/p>\nBroncos crush Dogs to finish 2026 | 03:04<\/p>\n
BIG QUESTION MARKS OVER SOUTHS AND THEIR FULLBACK\ufeff<\/p>\n
South Sydney will enter this first week of the finals having won four of their final five games, but there premiership credentials have come into question.<\/p>\n
They will host the Knights at home next week after smashing a depleted Roosters side 50-20 on Friday night but Fox League\u2019s Mick Ennis has questioned if their game will hold up in finals conditions.<\/p>\n
Souths can score points, but are conceding a tick over 24 points a game.<\/p>\n
\u201cI question whether Souths have the athleticism and the fitness to go with the top couple of sides,\u201d Ennis said. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe thing I learned tonight is South Sydney have got a hell of a lot of work to do in a short period of time to get their defence right through the middle of the field.\u201d<\/p>\n
The win over the Roosters was expected given they rested $5 million of playing talent and the 42-22 win the week before was against the Titans.<\/p>\n
They\u2019re hardly looking like a side that\u2019s prepared to win a tight, low-scoring finals match.<\/p>\n
And it had Premiership winning half Braith Anasta doubting the form of Souths heading into the finals.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou watch this game tonight and my concern is that the wins could be deceiving, but we\u2019re only going to find that out over the next few weeks,\u201d Anasta said. <\/p>\n
Bennett hails great night for Jai | 05:37<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve been a big rap on them. Of any teams from five to eight, they\u2019re the most likely to cause upsets and be a threat throughout the final series, but you can\u2019t help but watch certain periods of this game and even last week and think when they come up against the Warriors and Panthers, how\u2019ll they go when it\u2019s in the trenches going toe-to-toe against teams that have performed all year.\u201d<\/p>\n
At their best, Souths are as lethal as any team in the competition, particularly down the left side.<\/p>\n
Cody Walker linking up with Latrell Mitchell and Alex Johnston will keep rival teams awake at night.<\/p>\n
But it\u2019s their off periods in games which still lets them down.<\/p>\n
Go back to the win over Parramatta in August where they shot out to a 28-0 lead and almost got run down.<\/p>\n
It was typical of the type of team they are.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf Souths are to mix it with those sides that have finished above them, and that\u2019s the top four teams, at their absolute best, they can certainly put a game together without a doubt,\u201d Fox League\u2019s Greg Alexander said.<\/p>\n
\u201cLatrell, with the 80 minutes under his belt tonight, will be an enormous help for them. It\u2019s just whether they can do it week in, week out for the rest of the season.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s periods of their game where I look at them and I really believe that they\u2019re the side that opposition sides will fear to play because of the personnel in their team and those periods that they put together,\u201d Ennis added. <\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s just these 10 or 15 minute periods of lapses of concentration or fatigue. I think the jury\u2019s still out.\u201d <\/p>\n
Latrell Mitchell is the key. Picture: Jonathan NgSource: News Corp Australia<\/p>\n
Mitchell is without doubt their best player and he\u2019s now had two games back from a nerve injury and his big hit on Toby Rodwell was an example of how he can threaten without the ball.<\/p>\n
He has an aura few other players can match and if Souths can take a team deep into a match, a guy like Latrell could be the difference with a big play that only can come up with. <\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s what makes Souths a different side because he intimidates people. That\u2019s what makes him a force in origin,\u201d Ennis said. <\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s very few players in the competition that can have those moments. I thought he played in third gear.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere was a play he came up with early in the second half before their first try. Latrell\u2019s ball to Alex Johnston was all class. That\u2019s what he can do,\u201d Alexander added. <\/p>\n
Wayne Bennett will also have something to think about when it comes to his fullback.<\/p>\n
Jye Gray and Matt Dufty have had stints at the back at various points in the season with Dufty surprising many with his form after a stint in the Super League.<\/p>\n
Ennis knows who he\u2019d have in the No. 1 jumper next week.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t think Jye Gray did enough to seal that number one jersey. I thought at times Cody Walker, Cameron Murray and Jaden Sullivan really did a good job through the middle part of the field, but they could have cashed in more had they have had the creativity of Dufty,\u201d Ennis said. <\/p>\n
Trell Mitt puts on a massive shot | 00:22<\/p>\n
WARRIORS\u2019 OMINOUS WARNING… BUT DID RIVAL JUST PROVIDE \u2018BLUEPRINT\u2019?<\/p>\n
Warriors coach Andrew Webster has sent an ominous warning ahead of the finals, declaring his side has plenty more improvement in them to go to another level in September.<\/p>\n
The Warriors fell just short of claiming their first minor premiership since 2002 after leaving the door open for Penrith to claim a fourth J.J. Giltinan Shield in seven seasons.<\/p>\n
Webster said his side had struggled through an injury-disrupted end to the season, but was confident a few tweaks would bring the best out of the Warriors regardless of who they played in the finals. <\/p>\n
\u201cI think we know exactly what we\u2019re going to do, which is the best part,\u201d Webster said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was just saying to the boys, the formula to finals is make sure you\u2019ve got a team that has got line speed, aggressive tackles, creates momentum with the ball.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut there\u2019s clearly some things we\u2019ve just got iron out, which is fine.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut we created history tonight, most wins of a season as a Warriors team, and there\u2019s just a couple of things to iron out that will have a big impact on our game, not just a little bit of impact, like a big impact, so we can sort those out as well.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo, Penrith beat Tigers by more than two we\u2019re playing Dolphins and if they get rolled or less than that, we\u2019re playing Roosters.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo, either or, they\u2019re good teams, and we\u2019ll be ready.\u201d<\/p>\n
Determined Wahs break Manly hearts | 03:25<\/p>\n
In the end it will be the Dolphins, who have already toppled the Warriors after winning a Suncorp Stadium thriller earlier this year.<\/p>\n
The Dolphins have the kind of speed and strike out wide to worry the Warriors and they could lean into the \u201cblueprint\u201d the Sea Eagles laid out in Saturday\u2019s game.<\/p>\n
\u201cManly shocked them a bit with how they shifted the ball so that may be a blueprint for opposition teams,\u201d Kevin Walters said on Fox League\u2019s Super Saturday. <\/p>\n
\u201cBut they\u2019re (the Warriors) still a good side and deserve to be where they are… I can see (them making the grand final).\u201d<\/p>\n
The Warriors aren\u2019t exactly entering the finals in great form despite being on a six-game winning streak given the unconvincing nature of their victories in the past two weeks.<\/p>\n
Premiership-winning halfback Cooper Cronk, however, is not overly concerned.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think he (Webster) knows his team,\u201d Cronk said.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes, they weren\u2019t at their best. I think there was subconsciously one eye on next week and what could be possible through September. I think the momentum of New Zealand and a home final will have them dialled in week one.\u201d<\/p>\n
JENKINS RISE ENDS WITH PRESTIGIOUS MEDAL<\/p>\n
Who would have thought Tom Jenkins would have claimed one of the more prized awards in the game when he was languishing in reserve grade at the Newcastle Knights in 2024?<\/p>\n
Jenkins couldn\u2019t get a game in Newcastle and only made five appearances in the top grade and scored no tries.<\/p>\n
He decided to come back to Penrith but didn\u2019t think he\u2019d be a first grader.<\/p>\n
He was just happy to go around in a third-tier competition to see if he could reignite his career.<\/p>\n
Well, he\u2019s gone from park footy to winning the prestigious Ken Irvine Medal for the competition\u2019s leading try scorer, shared with Alex Johnston. <\/p>\n
\u201cHe was playing reserve grade at the Knights, then he went back to the Penrith area,\u201d Matty Johns told James Maloney on Sunday Night with Matty Johns. <\/p>\n
Maloney said the rise of Jenkins has been remarkable. <\/p>\n
\u201cHe was at St Mary\u2019s, I believe, in the Ron Massey Cup, and then I think went through reserve grade at Penrith there and then came back. So it\u2019s an awesome story,\u201d Maloney said. <\/p>\n
What\u2019s made his 2027 even better is the way the 2026 season ended.<\/p>\n
Jenkins scored 13 tries from 21 games on return to Penrith but was surprisingly dropped on the eve of the finals by Ivan Cleary.<\/p>\n
It easily could have dented his confidence and left him a frustrated footballer once again, but he rose to become one of the game\u2019s most lethal wingers. <\/p>\n
Cleary paid tribute to Jenkins after Sunday\u2019s win and said he\u2019s admired the way he\u2019s bounced back.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s had an unbelievable season,\u201d Cleary said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a good lesson for lots of people. He\u2019s worked hard and is happy. He missed out in the finals series last year and copped that, worked on a few things and came back bigger and better.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cleary said Jenkins has turned himself into a more complete winger in his second stint at the club.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe two tries he scored tonight were special finishes. Left hand, right hand, he\u2019s just a finisher and he\u2019s even more than that, he\u2019s really improved his yardage game this year,\u201d Cleary said.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s just so consistent so I\u2019m really happy for him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jenkins finished second of all wingers in the Red Bull High Flyer Player Rankings after a breakout 2026 season which has seen him become of the best aerial threats in the competition.<\/p>\n
If Jenkins continues his try-scoring form, and Penrith goes deep in the finals series, he might even end the year with an Australian jersey.<\/p>\n
Kangaroos coach Kevin Walters has said that finals form will be a huge factor in World Cup selections later in the year.<\/p>\n
ROUND 27 TEAM OF THE WEEK (Fox Lab)<\/p>\n
Taine Tuaupiki – First career hat-trick for Tuaupiki to go along with an equal career high 14 tackle breaks and 150 run metres. 18 points in the thrilling one-point victory over Manly, a career best. Also chased down Saab to make one of the best try savers of the season<\/p>\n
Xavier Savage – Scored his second career hat-trick, including a grubber to himself for his first try. He ran for 246 metres with 62 post contact, eight tackle busts and a try assist. It was his seventh 200+ metre game and has never had 20 carries when reaching 200.<\/p>\n
Casey McLean – First career hat-trick for McLean who tormented the Wests Tigers right edge defence. He ran for 190 metres, made three linebreaks, seven tackle busts, and contributed to a further two Penrith tries. <\/p>\n
Solomone Saukuru – Found great success against the Panthers right edge in the second half. In just his fourth first grade game, the young centre scored a try, ran for 162 metres and made four linebreaks (all in second half). Just the second Wests Tigers player since 2023 to record 4+ linebreaks in a game (Turuva Rd. 6, 2026 v Knights) <\/p>\n
Josiah Karapani – One of the best winger performances of the season. Karapani scored two spectacular tries, made two linebreaks, and broke a career high 13 tackles in Brisbane\u2019s upset win over Canterbury.<\/p>\n
Jack Cole – Laid on two try assists and was involved in two others (most try involvements from Five-Eighths in Rnd 27) as he put in a strong performance to solidify his spot as the starting Five-Eighth as Finals start. Forced a drop out and made 20 tackles, including two tackle turnovers, one leading to a McLean try. <\/p>\n
Coby Black – broke the record for most points on debut, held by Amos Roberts at 22 for the Dragons since 2000. His 26 points is the equal third most all time for any Raiders player in a match and most since Terry Campese scored 36 points against the Panthers in 2008. He scored two tries, kicked 9\/9 goals, and played a part in five others in a perfect first up performance. Causes the back three issues all night with his massive spiral bombs as he attempted 11 distance kicks for 431 metres (39.1 metres per kick).<\/p>\n
Toby Couchman – Most tackles of any prop in Round 27. Couchman finished off a career defining season with 18 runs, 171 run metres, and 30 effort plays in Dragons\u2019 comeback win over Parramatta.<\/p>\n
Harry Grant – A magical try assist to give Melbou<\/p>\n
rne a last-minute win in the Shire. Grant assisted another, made 33 tackles and ran for 48 metres. With 40+ run metres this season, Melbourne won eight of nine games.<\/p>\n
Stefano Utoikamanu – Stefano dominated against a near full-strength Cronulla forward pack, running for 121 metres, breaking seven tackles and finding four offloads in Melbourne\u2019s win.<\/p>\n
Dylan Egan – Best performance of his young career thus far. Career highs in run metres (122) and tackle busts (10) to go along with a try, two linebreaks and 42 tackles.<\/p>\n
Liam Martin – The veteran looked back to his best as Penrith claimed the Minor Premiership. Ran for his most metres since Round 26, 2023 (147), had two linebreaks and broke a career high nine tackles. He also assisted the opening try of the game with a linebreak and 20m pass to winger Brian To\u2019o.<\/p>\n
Cameron Murray – Peaking at the right time with back-to-back Team of the Week performances. Murray ran 12 times for 132 metres with 17 line engagements, had a linebreak, a linebreak assist and five tackle busts. He also made 30 tackles without a miss.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Roosters have a fresh headache on their hands, with a key firebrand\u2019s actions coming under the microscope.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":592549,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[111,139,69,213],"class_list":["post-592548","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sports","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/592548","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=592548"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/592548\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/592549"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=592548"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=592548"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=592548"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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