The riveting start to the 2023 NRL premiership continued in Round 2 as six teams chalked up their first wins of the season, including a string of nail-biters, a massive boilover and one of the gutsier wins we’ve witnessed in recent times.
Here’s the main takeaways from another wild weekend of rugby league.
Bounce-backs and barnburners
Heavyweights Penrith and Sydney Roosters responded to shock first-up losses with solid victories – over Souths and the plucky Warriors, respectively – to reaffirm their status as the top two teams in the premiership winner market ($4.50 and $6.50).
Meanwhile, Nicho Hynes-less Cronulla – one of four underdogs to get up – edged Parramatta 30-26 in an end-to-end thriller, and Canterbury, Newcastle and St George Illawarra also opened their 2023 accounts.
The fast-starting Bulldogs caught an uncharacteristically sloppy Storm on their heels to score a 26-12 upset as a $3 outsider.
The Knights overcame the loss of three key players to injury and played 25 minutes with only 12 men after a sin-binning and a send-off, yet came away from Leichhardt Oval with a remarkable 14-12 win over hapless Wests Tigers.
The knives were sharpening as the Dragons, coming off the Round 1 bye, fell 12-2 behind the Titans on Sunday evening. But five unanswered tries carried them to a vital 32-18 win to ease the pressure of a disastrous summer for the club.
Then there’s Wayne Bennett’s Dolphins, who continue to astonish the rugby league world. One of only two 2-0 teams, alongside on-fire neighbours Brisbane, the NRL newcomers dug deep to beat Canberra 20-14 in the Redcliffe wet via a 77th-minute try to surprise Dally M leader Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow.
The low-scoring trend to start 2023 persisted with five games going under the total points line and four producing 32 points or less as blistering attack takes a backseat to hearty defence in the early rounds.
Premiers deliver message
Penrith Panthers responded to criticism of their flat start the way champion teams invariably do, carving out an ultimately nail-biting but essentially convincing 16-10 win over a team regarded as one of their biggest threepeat obstacles.
The Panthers’ benchmark defence kept Souths on a doughnut until the last 15 minutes, coupling relentless marker pressure and line speed with flashes of attacking sizzle. Stephen Crichton was on fire and Jarome Luai provided the perfect riposte to doubters.
For the Rabbitohs, it was a reality check. They can take heart from a Latrell Mitchell-inspired late flurry that almost conjured golden point…but the premiership smoky of the moment was comprehensively outplayed for more than an hour.
Cody Walker seemed more preoccupied with personal beefs than getting his team on the scoreboard, while Lachlan Ilias’ learning curve continued as he was afforded a fraction of the leeway the Sharks provided in last week’s career-best display.
The Panthers suddenly head into the Round 3 bye in great shape, while the Rabbitohs will have hopefully heeded some grudge-match lessons ahead of another potential powder keg clash with the Roosters on Friday night.
Walsh-boosted Broncos sound warning
Brisbane Broncos could hardly have done any more in the opening fortnight of the competition to put a late-2022 fadeout and a controversy-tinged summer behind them.
Following an epic road upset of the premiers in Round 1, the effervescent Broncos carved out a richly deserved 28-16 home victory over another of last season’s top-four heavyweights, North Queensland.
Courageous defence got the job done at Penrith, but on Friday night it was scintillating attack that underpinned a big derby statement. The Broncos put the foot on the accelerator with the ball in hand and the uncharacteristically disjointed and flustered Cowboys stalled.
The undisputed star of the show was 20-year-old fullback Reece Walsh, who was near-untouchable on club debut. A rookie sensation at the Warriors, Walsh endured a difficult sophomore season in a battling team last year.
But in returning to Brisbane he’s linked with a team ideally suited to capitalise on his rare kitbag of skills. Walsh revelled in the occasion to finish with 175 metres, three line-break assists, a try-assist from a kick and a memorable match-sealing try.
Walsh looks like he’s played with in-form five-eighth novice Ezra Mam for years – their combination, with Adam Reynolds sitting back and pulling the strings behind a dynamic pack, spells danger for the rest of the NRL. Corey Oates’ broken jaw was the only downside of a memorable night.
The Broncos’ prices have been slashed to make the Top 8 ($1.35) and the Top 4 ($2.35), while they’ve rocketed to the fourth line of premiership betting ($11).
Storm’s injury crisis worsens
Craig Bellamy takes a loss harder than most coaches, but he’s rarely been as ashen-faced as he was following Melbourne’s 26-12 defeat to Canterbury at AAMI Park.
The $1.30 favourites were a shadow of themselves in conceding the first five tries of the match, producing their most constructive play of the night when a win was effectively out of reach.
The shorthanded Storm’s convincing loss was compounded by knee injury that is slated to keep front-row enforcer Nelson Asofa-Solomona out for two months, joining Justin Olam, Tui Kamikamica, Ryan Papenhuyzen and Dean Ieremia on the medium- to long-term injured list.
Cameron Munster – sorely missed on Saturday night – is aiming for a Round 4 return, while Bellamy should have Tariq Sims, Tom Eisenhuth and late Round 2 withdrawal Xavier Coates available for Saturday’s Gold Coast road trip.
The result was a massive fillip for Cameron Ciraldo and the Bulldogs, however, after a heavy first-up defeat to Manly. Tyros Jacob Kiraz and second-rower Jacob Preston, playing just his second NRL game, were particularly impressive in the pressure-relieving W.
The Bulldogs are $2.40 to qualify for the playoffs for the first time since 2016.
Trouble in Tiger Town
With an overhauled coaching staff and several blue-chip recruits, it was almost inconceivable Wests Tigers could be 0-2 after back-to-back matches at a sold-out Leichhardt Oval against unfancied Gold Coast and Newcastle.
It was equally implausible that the long-suffering joint venture could have produced a performance than their 22-10 capitulation to the Titans – but Sunday’s 16-14 defeat to the Knights was one for the ages.
The Knights lost Kalyn Ponga in the first minute, Jayden Brailey after 14 minutes, Tyson Frizell early in the second half, had Dom Young sin-binned during the first half and played the last 15 minutes a man short after Jacob Saifiti was sent off for an ugly high shot.
The Tigers’ attack is an abomination. They had a whopping 44 tackles inside the Knights’ 20 against a shorthanded team but zero idea.
Sheens and co. need to abandon their supposed return to an up-tempo offensive style before it’s too late. It’s not 2005 and the Tigers don’t have players of the ilk of Marshall, Prince, Hodgson and Farah to carry out a gameplan that probably wouldn’t work in 2023 if they did.
It’s crunch time for the Tigers in Round 3 as they head to Belmore to take on the Bulldogs. Their ability to rise to the occasion at packed suburban grounds on Sunday afternoons suggests their $2.75 underdog price is best avoided.