Lomax strikes late to help Dragons overcome Tigers
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The Dragons rallied late to snatch a 24-22 hard-fought win over a gallant Wests Tigers side at CommBank Stadium on Sunday.
With scores locked at 22-all in the final minute of the game, a high shot from Asu Kepaoa on Zac Lomax enabled the Dragons centre to take a clutch penalty shot from out wide.
It was another heart-breaking finish for the Wests Tigers, who shot themselves in the foot in the final 10 minutes with costly errors that allowed the visitors to snatch victory.
Earlier, Dragons second-rower Jaydn Su'A kicked off his 100th game in style, finding Tautau Moga on the wing, who produced a deft grubber back inside for the milestone man to open the scoring.
The Dragons lost Cody Ramsay to the sin bin for a professional foul and the Wests Tigers capitalised in the 21st minute when playmaker Adam Doueihi put hooker Fa'amanu Brown over to level the scores.
Su'a scores in milestone match
Wests Tigers conjured back-to-back tries via another Doueihi try assist with rookie second-rower Tom Freebairn muscling over the top of three Dragons defenders to score.
Dragons fullback Jack Bird was next to spend 10 minutes in the bin for dissent towards referee Liam Kennedy, enabling the home side to extend their lead with Freebairn grabbing a double before half-time.
The Dragons needed to be next to score and did with Lomax sending Moga over with a vintage flick pass.
Lomax draws the Dragons level
A try-saving effort from Doueihi on Moga was a rare second half highlight for the Tigers as Lomax finished off a Bird grubber to score next to the uprights to get the scoreboard back level.
The Tigers appeared to have had it won when Madden danced through the Dragons defence and sprinted 80m to retake the lead.
However, an effort from Jackson Ford in the 75th minute brought the score back to even before Lomax came up with the clutch kick.
Match: Wests Tigers v Dragons
Round 24 -
home Team
Wests Tigers
16th Position
away Team
Dragons
10th Position
Venue: CommBank Stadium, Sydney
Match Snapshot
- Dragons prop Blake Lawrie left the field in the 29th minute for a HIA which he passed.
- St George Illawarra second-rower Jaydn Su'a played his 100th NRL game at CommBank Stadium.
- Tigers hooker Fa'amanu Brown has scored six tries since his miracle comeback to the NRL.
- Dragons flyer Tautau Moga has scored six tries in four games for the Red V.
- Tigers centre Asu Kepaoa was placed on report for dangerous contact in the 78th minute.
- Jaydn Su'A was dangerous in his milestone match with 222 running metres and six tackle breaks.
- Tatau Moga was close behind Su'A, chalking up 221 run metres throughout the match.
- Prop Joe Ofahengaue racked up 38 tackles in another strong defensive display for the Tigers.
- Second-rower Tom Freebairn scored his first NRL try, with a double for the Tigers.
Play of the Game
A pressure kick from the sideline handed the Dragons the final minute win for the home side. After Zac Lomax was handed a penalty for high contact in the 78th minute of the game, the star centre slotted the kick 5 metres in from touch to cement the hard-fought win for the Red V.
Dragons snatch victory from jaws of defeat
"I was really happy with the second-half, not the way we played but the way we grabbed on to the game and got there in the end. Luckily we steadied up at half-time and the boys did a good job just to keep coming in that second-half. Our execution obviously wasn’t where we wanted it to be but we did enough in the end. It was not acceptable what (Jack Bird) did, putting us down to 12 men but in the second half he did a lot to make up for that." - Dragons coach Anthony Griffin.
"In the second-half we were reasonably poor unfortunately, we gave them opportunities to win the game. There was an opportunity for us to take the penalty goal with seven minutes to go so it’s a huge learning curve, how to handle pressure and adversity and as I said to the boys the big thing is we’ve also got to know the rules and how the game works." - Tigers interim coach Brett Kimmorley.
What's Next
Dragons will finish their season at home, hosting the Broncos at Netstrata Jubilee Stadium on Saturday.
The Tigers will also enjoy a home game in the last round of the regular season, playing host to Canberra. Wests will likely need a victory to have a chance of avoiding the wooden spoon.
