Bulldogs overcome star's injury to defeat Knights

Addo-Carr was superb through 45 minutes, crossing for a double in what seemed a timely reminder to NSW coach Michael Maguire.

His night took a turn, however, when he suffered a hamstring injury early in the second half and did not return. 

Canterbury were resolute in defence in a wet affair in Newcastle. The visitors were reduced to 12 men on two separate occasions, however they did not concede a try and crossed for two of their own while down a man.

The Knights opened the scoring through a Jackson Hastings penalty goal after Canterbury fullback Connor Tracy was sent to the sin bin for a professional foul in a contest for the ball. 

Newcastle winger Greg Marzhew was denied in the corner moments later before Addo-Carr crossed for the first try of the match with a brilliant solo effort. 

The 28-year-old had a second 13 minutes later when he finished off a left-side shift and the Bulldogs successfully defended their lead throughout the remainder of the first half to enter the sheds up 10-2.

The Bulldogs didn't miss a beat after Addo-Carr's exit and continued to slowly wear their opponents down. 

Jacob Preston turned pressure into points with his fourth try of the season however, Canterbury had their backs against the wall six minutes later when Toby Sexton was sent to the sin bin.

For the second time in the match, the Bulldogs were able to cross while down a man after Josh Curran grounded the ball just inside the dead-ball line. 

Preston had his second in the 67th minute before Bonson Xerri added to the Newcastle pain with a try of his own.

The match ended on a sour note for the Knights, with Jacob Saifiti sent to the sin bin and put on report for a head butt on Reed Mahoney with one minute to play.

Match Snapshot

• Canterbury claimed their first away win of the season at McDonald Jones Stadium. They have now won eight of their past ten matches in Newcastle.
• Bulldogs youngster Lipoi Hopoi made his NRL debut when he entered the fray midway through the first half. The forward has been working closely with club legend Mark O'Meley and was a member of Canterbury's Jersey Flegg premiership-winning team in 2023.
• Friday's loss snapped a four-game winning streak for the Knights. Their last defeat also came at the hands of the Bulldogs. 
• It's the first time Canterbury have claimed home and away wins against Newcastle since 2017.
• Knights forward Daniel Saifiti left the match in the first half with a knee injury and did not return.

Play of the Game

Josh Addo-Carr produced a piece of individual brilliance from inside his own half to cross for the opening try of the match. After receiving the ball with plenty of space on the left flank, the winger chipped over opposite Enari Tuala before Knights fullback David Armstrong collided with five-eighth Jack Cogger, allowing Addo-Carr to storm through, collect the ball and race away to score.

What They Said

"There was plenty of effort no doubt, but effort on its own is not going to win you the game. The first 20 minutes I thought we were doing a hell of a job keeping them down their own end. We had a couple of tries disallowed, they got a couple against the run of play. I thought that really deflated us, frustrated us and we never sort of overcome it. We need to learn and grow from that." - Knights coach Adam O'Brien

"I liked how we stuck at it in the first half. Some things didn't go our way but we had a couple of opportunities there and got some points on the board. It was different to a couple of games we played where we were controlling the game pretty well but not been taking our opportunities. This game we probably weren't controlling real well but we got two opportunities and got two tries. That was pretty pleasing to go into halftime ahead on the scoreboard. Then I was really happy with the second half to complete overall on the night above 80% in those conditions and to be brave with the football as well. Thats what I was most pleased with other than our defence." - Bulldogs coach Cameron Ciraldo

What's Next

The Knights will travel to Melbourne to face the Storm on Sunday afternoon while Canterbury will enjoy an extra day's rest before they host the Eels in their annual King's Birthday clash at Accor Stadium on Monday June 10.