Roosters put NRL on notice by stunning Bulldogs
Friday night's victory at Allianz Stadium lifts the Roosters to eighth place amid the battle for the remaining finals spots, though their fate remains in the balance with three games to go.
But claiming their biggest scalp of the season in the third-placed Bulldogs, the Roosters proved they'll be capable of some serious damage should they get past the Dolphins, Manly and Wests Tigers and into finals.
Easts appear to be finding form at just the right time, winning their past three games by a combined total of 116-28, with winger Daniel Tupou bagging a hat trick in the latest smash-up.
Roosters prop Whyte, among the NRL's major improvers this year, led the charge and had two tries - as many as he'd scored across 52 NRL games before Friday.
His side up by only two points, Whyte grabbed an Angus Crichton offload after it bounced away from Canterbury's Josh Curran and dived over just before halftime.
Whyte punished Bulldogs fullback Connor Tracey for dropping Hugo Savala's bomb, bullocking past four defenders to make it a three-score game just after the break.
It continued a brilliant year for Whyte, who has excelled with the unenviable task of replacing Jared Waerea-Hargreaves as the Roosters' forward pack leader.
The game was never again close after Whyte's feats, with Tupou scoring a second try from a Sam Walker cross-field kick to put the Roosters on track with 25 minutes left.
INTERCEPT 🙌 pic.twitter.com/z1pnT2gJEP
— NRL (@NRL) August 15, 2025
Tupou's third try in the final minutes made it 182 for his career, moving the left winger into outright fourth in the all-time try-scoring stakes, well clear of Manly legend Steve Menzies (180).
The Bulldogs' loss puts a sizeable dent in their top-two hopes. Beating Melbourne at AAMI Park next week now appears non-negotiable if they are to finish higher than third.
A top-four finish remains likely, given Cameron Ciraldo's side need only one more win across the final three weeks to confirm a double chance in finals.
But the Bulldogs have now lost two of their past three games, both to sides outside the top eight.
The Roosters may need to contend without Billy Smith as they fight to shore up their top-eight spot, after his ugly cannonball tackle on Sam Hughes in the first half.
The NRL has taken a dim view of similar tackles in recent times, with Coen Hess and Felise Kaufusi receiving multi-week bans in the past month.
Hughes later went on report for a high shot on Smith in the second half.
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