NRL, ROUND 9, APRIL 30th, 2023 CANTERBURY BULLDOGS v ST GEORGE DRAGONS
WIN STADIUM,WOLLONGONG,NSW
St George Illawarra take on the Bulldogs to finish Round 9 with both sides desperate for a victory leading into Magic Round next week.
The Bulldogs gave the Sharks a good test in Round 8 but ultimately had no answer for the class of Nicho Hynes and co when the game sat in the balance, with the 33-20 defeat leaving them with just three wins to their name in 2023.
Missed tackles remain an issue for Cameron Ciraldo’s side, with another 35 against Cronulla meaning they have now missed more in 2023 than any side bar the Dolphins and Cowboys.
The Dragons, meanwhile, showed plenty of courage to fight back from 14 points down in the second half to push the Roosters to the limit on Anzac Day but still came up short of a much-needed win.
The performance of young fullback Tyrell Sloan was a bright spot for the Dragons and they’ll look to him to again come up with some slick plays as they chase a first win since Round 5.
The two sides have met on 43 occasions in club history with Canterbury-Bankstown holding an overall lead with 26 wins. However, the Dragons have had the recent wood over the Bulldogs with five wins in their past eight clashes
DRAGONS.
1. Tyrell Sloan 2. Mathew Feagai 3. Moses Suli 4. Zac Lomax 5. Max Feagai 6. Talatau Amone 7. Ben Hunt 8. Michael Molo 9. Moses Mbye 10. Blake Lawrie 11. Ben Murdoch-Masila 12. Jack Bird 13. Jack de Belin 14. Jacob Liddle 15. Jaiyden Hunt 16. Toby Couchman 17. Josh Kerr 18. Zane Musgrove 19. Jayden Sullivan 20. Billy Burns 21. Viliami Fifita 22. Sione Finau
DRAGONS. Max Feagai comes in to replace Tautau Moga (shoulder) and will line up on the opposite wing to his twin brother Mathew. Michael Molo is named to start at prop after being a late inclusion from the bench on ANZAC Day, while coach Anthony Griffin has named an unchanged interchange, with Zane Musgrove again the replacement player.
BULLDOGS
1. Hayze Perham 2. Declan Casey 3. Jake Averillo 4. Paul Alamoti 5. Braidon Burns 6. Josh Reynolds 7. Matt Burton 8. Max King 9. Reed Mahoney 10. Tevita Pangai Junior 11. Corey Waddell 12. Jacob Preston 13. Raymond Faitala-Mariner 14. Kurtis Morrin 15. Jayden Okunbor 16. Samuel Hughes 17. Ryan Sutton 19. Fa’amanu Brown 20. Karl Oloapu 21. Reece Hoffman 22. Jeral Skelton 23. Kyle Flanagan
BULLDOGS.
Max King suffered a rib injury, with reports on Thursday that the prop could be out for four weeks. Harrison Edwards has been included in the 22-man squad after approval from the NRL. Halfback Kyle Flanagan has paid the price for the Bulldogs’ three-game losing run and has been dropped from the side for club favourite Josh Reynolds, who moves up from the bench. Versatile forward Fa’amanu Brown is set to return two weeks ahead of schedule from a dislocated elbow suffered in Round 4 and is listed as the replacement player for now.
PREDICTION.
Both sides badly need a win here as they lose touch with the top eight teams. The hosts have won six straight in Wollongong, and five from eight against the Dogs.
I do not think there will be much between the sides, but at home is an advantage so I will go Dragons by 2.5 points
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