I hate the Sydney Roosters. I hate that a club with no fans and no junior league, with a false history tarnished by the fact that no one cares can be soaking up the funding that other clubs with actual supporters could use.
However, who cares, because this game was sooooo good.
The Wests Tigers looked like they were going to blow the Roosters off the park early on, they had all of the possession and field position, they crossed the line three times only to be denied, they just were all over the Roosters. This one was a non contest.
The problem was, for all their dominance, the Tigers didn’t build all that big of a lead, and that was always going to be a problem.
In the second half, the Roosters grafted their way back into the match and with the scores level.
Then, the epicness began!
The Tigers were forced to play with just 12 players for the last few minutes of the match, having used all of their interchanges and then having Benji Marshall limp from the field with a knee injury….they held on.
The Tigers had a scrum ten meters out from their own line with just a minute lets in the game, which they won, but no one dived on the ball! The Roosters took possession, surely and easy field goal, or so you would think!
Young Tigers forward Simon Dwyer his Roosters forward Jared Waerea-Hargreaves in a tackle that was just incredible. He knocked him senseless, and forced a vital turnover, saving the game and basically forcing extra time.
In extra time, great runs, amazing covering tackles, missed field goals, this game had everything! It was the time of game that makes you realise why you love this sport!
At the end of the day, Tigers played dumb at the worst possible time. Instead of using good field position to set for a field goal, they kept spreading it wide. It cost them in the end as Roosters center Shaun Kenny-Dowall took the intercept and raced away to end an amazing game in the 100th minute!
An amazing contest that every Rugby League fan must see to believe!
A few things out of this game…
Tim Sheens made a mess of his interchange if you ask me. To have Gareth Ellis off during the final moments of the match, there is no excuse for that.
The Tigers had nothing in attack once Marshall left the field. In his Newspaper article this morning he says he hopes to be ready for this coming weekends, but I would be extremely surprised if he makes it!
If he doesn’t play, the Tigers are done. They will be out of the finals anyway if Manly can beat the Dragons.
On the Roosters side of things, I think their forwards eventually wore down the opposition and that comes back to my fears about the Tigers soft forward pack.
Mitchael Pearce was anonymous in this match. Todd Carney wasn’t great but did have a few sparks throughout.
I was pissed off at the way the Channel 9 commentary team was openly cheering for the Roosters. The sooner the game is rid of Channel 9 the better!
In an amazing twist, if the Sea Eagles can win tomorrow, the Roosters would get next week off and be one win from the Grand Final.
I think if these two teams get a second chance and have to line up next week, they are both stuffed. Just having to slog out 100 minutes of football, it was a great effort, but that takes its toll.
The last thing you’d want is to have to face a team with a big forward pack like the Panthers next weekend, and that is what could be ahead of one of these teams.
What ever the case, and amazing game!
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