Dragons break Bulldogs' hearts, Raiders' horror start continues with Parramatta thrashing
The 18-14 thriller was the game of the NRLW season so far, with the Dragons racing out of the blocks before the Bulldogs showed their customary fight to give themselves a chance at victory.
Hindsight is a wonderful thing, but they'll probably regret turning down a shot at penalty goal from 30 metres out with two minutes remaining, with halfback Tayla Preston missing a shot at field goal moments after she sent another attempt cannoning into the post.
The missed opportunity hurt them in the end as Nita Maynard-Perrin – who had a try disallowed late in the second half – jumped out of dummy-half and played short to Reh who burst through to score the winner.
The Dragons have claimed victory over the Bulldogs in an NRLW thriller. Picture: Getty Images
It was an epic finish to a cracking game that started with Raecene McGregor nailing a 40/30 which led to Indie Bostock opening the scoring from the next set.
The Dragons kicked clear with another try before the Bulldogs struck back twice down their left edge, with Hannah Southwell's slashing solo effort from 40 metres out putting the Red V back in front.
But the Bulldogs were back level when fullback Andie Robinson sliced through, only for Preston's sideline conversion to thump into the upright.
CANBERRA'S HORROR START TO THE NRLW SEASON CONTINUES
Canberra's horror start to the NRLW season has continued after they slumped to their third loss in a row at home as the Eels punished some sloppy errors at the back to celebrate Mahalia Murphy's return from injury with a thumping win.
Murphy missed the opening two rounds of the season with a hamstring injury but scored a crucial try on the stroke of halftime as Parramatta bounced back from last week's loss in New Zealand to win 46-12.
The halves had a field day with Cassey Tohi-Hiku setting up two tries while Rachael Pearson had three assists and scored one of her own as Canberra struggled to deal with their high kicks.
Rachael Pearson one of the Eels' eight tries. Picture:The Eels made them pay with a couple of quick tries, including one to Martha Mataele who crashed over for her first try to celebrate her birthday on a day the club posted its highest NRLW score.
The future looks bright for a team brimming with young talent, including rookie prop Tess McWilliams who powered past superstar Simaima Taufa to open the second-half scoring.
Parramatta's attack will be hard to stop if Zali Fay continues to do special things after the winger flew through the air to reel in a Pearson kick before she offloaded to Owen who grabbed her second try.
Rory Owen attempts to escape the Canberra defence. Picture:CAPITAL CURSE
The Raiders would have been banking on a fast start to the season with their first three games at home, but they are anchored to the bottom of the table and are winless through the opening three rounds.
They have now lost nine-straight games at GIO Stadium, with their last win coming way back in 2023 against the Eels.
The writing was on the wall from the very first set when they dropped the ball, and things didn't improve as the Green Machine completed just 53 per cent of their sets in the first half.
Their inability to handle kicks is a huge concern with all four of Parramatta's first-half tries coming on the back of simple errors, including one to Rory Owen who was simply more desperate to attack the loose ball.
The Raiders suffered their third loss at home. Picture:SIGNS OF HOPE
Madison Bartlett grabbed a double to become the second player to score 30 NRLW tries, while Raiders fans would have enjoyed what they saw from Elise Simpson who overcame a few tough moments to shine on debut.
The local junior will learn a lot from Saturday's showing, with Simpson gifting the Eels a couple of tries with dropped balls but also coming up with some big plays in defence.
The fullback set up both of Bartlett's tries with lovely passes on the left edge, while Simpson also had a huge kick return which led to another try a few plays later.
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