Sandon Smith shines as Roosters thump Dragons
Sandon Smith has ignited the Sydney Roosters' season and sent a message that he can be a long-term playmaker for the NRL glamour club after starring in a 46-18 win over St George Illawarra.
Smith scored two tries and kicked seven goals to chalk up 22 individual points as he won the Ashton-Collier Medal and piloted the Roosters (3-5) to victory in front of an Anzac Day crowd of 41,021 at Allianz Stadium on Friday.
The five-eighth even spent time in the sin bin for a high tackle on Lachlan Ilias but that was the sole blemish on arguably the most-impressive display of his 36-game NRL career.
"His positioning was in the right spot, and you can see he has got really great vision," said Roosters coach Trent Robinson.
"When he plays like that, he sees a lot.
"To handle 10 minutes (in the bin) and then come back on and continue that was really nice."
Like his side, Smith's performances have been up and down to start 2025.
And at a time when the Roosters have been consistently linked to bringing outgoing Manly captain Daly Cherry-Evans to the club, Smith could have been forgiven for feeling like he was on borrowed time.
But the 22-year-old's performance will give Robinson hope that along with Sam Walker, who is set to return from knee surgery in the next six weeks, Smith can be part of a long-term halves combination for the Bondi club.
Sandon Smith is having a DAY! 🔥#NRLRoostersDragons pic.twitter.com/UEMCsTzdaU
— NRL (@NRL) April 25, 2025
The pressure was on Robinson's men heading into Friday's game where a loss would have sent the Roosters to the bottom of the NRL ladder for the first time since 2016.
But they hit the ground running when Smith scored in the third minute.
He dug into the line to create a right-to-left spread and then backed up Daniel Tupou on the inside to receive the winger's flick pass and cross.
The Dragons hit back five minutes later when Val Holmes jolted the ball loose from James Tedesco and winger Sione Finau raced 80m to score.
But that was about as good as it got for Shane Flanagan's side in the first half as Mark Nawaqanitawase powered over to push the Roosters further ahead.
After converting Nawaqanitawase's try, Smith added a penalty goal and then grabbed his second when he scooped up a loose ball and dummied past Clint Gutherson to give his side a 20-6 halftime lead.
"The first half cooked us ... We had just 29 per cent of possession," said Dragons coach Flanagan.
"I could tell at halftime we were looking for answers and we were out on our feet."
Smith's dream afternoon hit a snare soon after the break when he was sin-binned for a high shot on Dragons halfback Ilias.
Smith's 10-minute absence did nothing to slow the Roosters down with bench forward Blake Steep tricking Gutherson with an identical dummy.
Kyle Flanagan scored for the Dragons just before Smith returned but the Roosters No.6 didn't miss a beat, setting up Tedesco straight after coming back on to the field.
The Roosters fullback added his second and set up halfback Hugo Savala in the final five minutes.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
39 minutes ago
Altuve and Melton each have 3 RBIs as Astros beat Twins 10-3
HOUSTON -- Jose Altuve and rookie Jacob Melton drove in three runs each as the Houston Astros jumped on Chris Paddack early and cruised to a 10-3 win over the Minnesota Twins on Friday night. Paddack (2-6) tied career highs by allowing 12 hits and nine runs — eight earned — in just four innings for his third straight loss. Houston rookie starter Colton Gordon (2-1) gave up six hits and two runs with five strikeouts in a career-high six innings. Jeremy Peña tied a season-high with four hits and rookie Cam Smith had two hits and two RBIs as the AL West-leading Astros won their third straight. Willi Castro, Royce Lewis and Ty France all hit solo homers for the Twins, who were blown out for the third time in four games after losing to Texas 16-4 Tuesday and 16-3 Thursday. Lewis, who missed the start of the season with a hamstring strain, pulled up as he was running to first base on a single in the ninth inning and was replaced by a pinch-runner. Manager Rocco Baldelli said Lewis has a strained left hamstring but that they don't know how severe it is and expect to know more Saturday. The Astros got to work early in this one. The bases were loaded with two outs in the first when Smith hit a two-run single to center field to make it 2-0. Melton followed with a single to right field to drive in another run. There were runners on first and third with one out in the second when Altuve's double scored two to make it 5-0. The Twins loaded the bases with two outs in the third but Carlos Correa grounded out to end the threat. Melton hit a two-run triple with no outs in the bottom of the inning to push the lead to 7-0. A sacrifice fly by Mauricio Dubón made it 8-0. The Twins got on the board with Castro's two-out homer in the fourth inning. Altuve homered to left-center to start the bottom of the inning and make it 9-1. Smith's two-RBI single in the first that gave Houston the lead for good. The Astros had four doubles to give them 15 in their last three games. Astros RHP Hunter Brown (8-3, 1.82 ERA) opposes Twins RHP Joe Ryan (7-2, 2.96) on Saturday.
San Francisco Chronicle
an hour ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Altuve and Melton each have 3 RBIs as Astros beat Twins 10-3
HOUSTON (AP) — Jose Altuve and rookie Jacob Melton drove in three runs each as the Houston Astros jumped on Chris Paddack early and cruised to a 10-3 win over the Minnesota Twins on Friday night. Paddack (2-6) tied career highs by allowing 12 hits and nine runs — eight earned — in just four innings for his third straight loss. Jeremy Peña tied a season-high with four hits and rookie Cam Smith had two hits and two RBIs as the AL West-leading Astros won their third straight. Willi Castro, Royce Lewis and Ty France all hit solo homers for the Twins, who were blown out for the third time in four games after losing to Texas 16-4 Tuesday and 16-3 Thursday. Lewis, who missed the start of the season with a hamstring strain, pulled up as he was running to first base on a single in the ninth inning and was replaced by a pinch-runner. Manager Rocco Baldelli said Lewis has a strained left hamstring but that they don't know how severe it is and expect to know more Saturday. The Astros got to work early in this one. The bases were loaded with two outs in the first when Smith hit a two-run single to center field to make it 2-0. Melton followed with a single to right field to drive in another run. There were runners on first and third with one out in the second when Altuve's double scored two to make it 5-0. The Twins loaded the bases with two outs in the third but Carlos Correa grounded out to end the threat. Melton hit a two-run triple with no outs in the bottom of the inning to push the lead to 7-0. A sacrifice fly by Mauricio Dubón made it 8-0. The Twins got on the board with Castro's two-out homer in the fourth inning. Smith's two-RBI single in the first that gave Houston the lead for good. Key stat The Astros had four doubles to give them 15 in their last three games. Up next Astros RHP Hunter Brown (8-3, 1.82 ERA) opposes Twins RHP Joe Ryan (7-2, 2.96) on Saturday. ___
Hamilton Spectator
an hour ago
- Hamilton Spectator
Altuve and Melton each have 3 RBIs as Astros beat Twins 10-3
HOUSTON (AP) — Jose Altuve and rookie Jacob Melton drove in three runs each as the Houston Astros jumped on Chris Paddack early and cruised to a 10-3 win over the Minnesota Twins on Friday night. Paddack (2-6) tied career highs by allowing 12 hits and nine runs — eight earned — in just four innings for his third straight loss. Houston rookie starter Colton Gordon (2-1) gave up six hits and two runs with five strikeouts in a career-high six innings. Jeremy Peña tied a season-high with four hits and rookie Cam Smith had two hits and two RBIs as the AL West-leading Astros won their third straight. Willi Castro, Royce Lewis and Ty France all hit solo homers for the Twins, who were blown out for the third time in four games after losing to Texas 16-4 Tuesday and 16-3 Thursday. Lewis, who missed the start of the season with a hamstring strain, pulled up as he was running to first base on a single in the ninth inning and was replaced by a pinch-runner. There was no immediate word on his injury. The Astros got to work early in this one. The bases were loaded with two outs in the first when Smith hit a two-run single to center field to make it 2-0. Melton followed with a single to right field to drive in another run. There were runners on first and third with one out in the second when Altuve's double scored two to make it 5-0. The Twins loaded the bases with two outs in the third but Carlos Correa grounded out to end the threat. Melton hit a two-run triple with no outs in the bottom of the inning to push the lead to 7-0. A sacrifice fly by Mauricio Dubón made it 8-0. The Twins got on the board with Castro's two-out homer in the fourth inning. Altuve homered to left-center to start the bottom of the inning and make it 9-1. Key moment Smith's two-RBI single in the first that gave Houston the lead for good. Key stat The Astros had four doubles to give them 15 in their last three games. Up next Astros RHP Hunter Brown (8-3, 1.82 ERA) opposes Twins RHP Joe Ryan (7-2, 2.96) on Saturday. ___ AP MLB:
