Dolphins stun injury-hit Sea Eagles as Fuller stands tall

Author: Martin Lenehan NRL Senior Journalist
Timestamp: Thu 9 May 2024, 09:47 PM

A three-try blitz in five minutes in the first half carried the Dolphins to a 30-24 win over an injury-hit Sea Eagles outfit at Suncorp Stadium.

The Sea Eagles lost superstar fullback Tom Trbojevic to a hamstring injury and winger Jason Saab (shoulder) on a night in which they again gave up a 12-point lead to fall to successive losses.

Among a host of stars for the home side, dynamic fullback Trai Fuller was a standout with 155 run metres and a freakish solo try from a chip and chase.

The Sea Eagles struck first in the 10th minute when Daly Cherry-Evans opted to run the ball on the last play and found Ben Trbojevic who put Tommy Talau over in the corner for a 4-0 lead.

The Dolphins hit back four minutes later when Euan Aitken picked off a Cherry-Evans pass and raced 50 metres to lock the scores up at 4-4.

A blow for Manly in the 17th minute when Saab landed awkwardly as he dived for a try but was denied by a great cover tackle by Fuller, whose defensive game was every bit as impressive as his attack.

Tommy Talau Try

The Sea Eagles had a second try in the 23rd minute when Tom Trbojevic put a well weighted kick into the in goal for Corey Waddell to follow through and score. Reuben Garrick's conversion made it 10-4.

With intercepts proving the order of the night it was Luke Brooks who swooped on a Max Plath pass and ran 40 metres before delivering the ball to Tolu Kolua for Manly's third four-pointer.

The Dolphins closed the gap six minutes before the break when Kodi Nikorima drifted across field and turned Connelly Lemuelu inside for a clear run to the line. Jamayne Isaako added the conversion to make it 16-10.

Mark Nicholls Try

On the next set it was Fuller in just his fifth game in the NRL producing a slashing solo try when he exploded into space, chipped over Tom Trbojevic and regathered to score before Mark Nicholls grabbed a rare four-pointer and the Dolphins had piled on three tries in five minutes to lead 20-16 at the break.

A mistake by Isaako from the kick-off handed Manly a golden opportunity to hit back but Cherry-Evans made a simple error in the play the ball and the Dolphins came away.

Ten minutes into the second half it was Tom and Jake Trbojevic combining from close range to lock things up at 20-20 after Jake's late offload put Tom over for the 95th try of his career. Garrick converted for a 22-20 lead.

An offside penalty against the Sea Eagles in the 56th minute handed Isaako an easy shot and the sharpshooter did the job to lock it up again at 22-22.

The Sea Eagles edged back in front in the 65th minute after Felise Kaufusi was penalised for a late tackle and Garrick slotted the kick to make it 24-22 to the visitors.

Herbie all effort

The contest took another twist in the 67th minute when the Dolphins marched down field on the back of a penalty and Jack Bostock finished off slick lead-up work by Isaiya Katoa and Herbie Farnworth to score. Isaako converted from wide out for a 28-24 Dolphins lead.

The Dolphins extended the lead to 30-24 after Ethan Bullemor was penalised for a dangerous tackle and from there the home side were able to close out their sixth win of the season.

Round 10 - Round 10 - Thursday 9 May

Full Time

Dolphins

Sea Eagles

Venue: Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane

Highlights Latest

Match Snapshot

The Sea Eagles lost winger Jason Saab to a shoulder injury after 18 minutes.
Dolphins fullback Trai Fuller ran for 155 metres and had four tackle breaks to go with his chip and chase try.
Dolphins hooker Jeremy Marshall-King was placed on report in the 49th minute for a crusher tackle.
Tommy Talau and Tolu Koula combined for 32 runs and 339 metres for the Sea Eagles.
Mark Nicholls led the way up front for the Dolphins with 116 metres from 12 runs in 43 minutes of game time.

Euan Aitken Try

Sea Eagles prop Josh Aloiai was placed on report for a high tackle in the 68th minute.
Dolphins lock Max Plath and Manly hooker Gordon Chan Kum Tong both left the field for a HIA with 13 minutes to play.
Manly fullback Tom Trbojevic left the field with a hamstring injury in the 69th minute.
Manly forward Ethan Bullemor went on report in the 79th minute for a dangerous tackle.
The Sea Eagles have conceded 136 points in their last four games at Suncorp.

Connelly Lemuelu Try

Play of the Game

Suncorp Stadium has witnessed some freakish chip and chase tries over the years thanks to Billy Slater and Allan Langer and tonight it was Dolphins No.1 Trai Fuller putting his name up in lights with a spectacular four-pointer. After sliding through some flimsy Manly defence on the halfway mark, Fuller came to fullback Tom Trbojevic and put a kick over his head before getting a perfect bounce and dotting down for a try that had the Phins faithful in raptures.

Trai Fuller Try

What they Said

"We didn't play well, pretty ugly, but we got the two points and that's what we came here for. We started the season with a couple of back-to-back wins but last year we lost our way a little bit and couldn't put two games together but we've done that tonight so that's important for us. I think Trai Fuller is a very special player - the size of him, the way that he plays. He got an opportunity to play on a regular basis the last 3-4 weeks which has just built his confidence and he's got a great future in front of him." - Dolphins coach Wayne Bennett

Dolphins: Round 10

"The five minutes before half-time was way off, they scored three tries from three consecutive sets so that was disappointing after we played some decent footy for about 30 minutes there. We had a few guys out already tonight and then with Saaby and Turbo going down it puts a pretty big dent in our squad but there is a group there that really care about the footy team and we'll put a team together next week and expect to come back here and put in a better performance for longer periods." - Sea Eagles coach Anthony Seibold