‘Never seen anything like it’ – the crazy blunder that cost the Dragons

Adam Brax
Jarome Luai, Jahream Bula

Jarome Luai celebrates with Wests Tigers team-mate Jahream Bula during their Round 9 win against St George Illawarra Dragons in 2025

St George Illawarra Dragons backrower Jaydn Su’A has produced one of the all-time try scoring blunders of rugby league history, handing the Wests Tigers a miraculous 12-point swing that proved the difference in a gripping 34–28 victory during Magic Round at Suncorp Stadium on Saturday.

“A three-man overlap, what a ball, what a pass, a three-man overlap, and the Dragons go over… or do they?” cried veteran commentator Andrew Voss as Su’A crossed untouched.

What followed was pure mayhem.

With no defender in sight and a perfectly executed long ball from Kyle Flanagan, Su’A went untouched and only had to ground the ball.

Instead, he lost control mid-dive, his own knee dislodging the ball in an unthinkable error.

“Su’A lost the ball, it’s play on and the Tigers are home,” came the stunned call, before Tigers fullback Jahream Bula scooped up the loose ball and sprinted more than the length of the field to score between the posts at the opposite end.

“Oh, that is such a blow for the Dragons… Bula runs a hundred and five metres. My goodness, the game can be so cruel!” said Voss.

It was a try that flipped a potential 20–16 halftime deficit into a commanding 26–10 lead for the Tigers heading into the sheds.

“I’ve never seen anything like this,” cried NRL legend Kevin Walters.

“There was no one near him… he just had to put the ball down,” Walters said.

Greg Alexander echoed the disbelief: “There’s only one moment I can think of like that, and that’s Max Mannix for the Bulldogs at Belmore, playing against the dragons,” referring to an event from way back in 1984.

But Alexander was quickly reminded that no one ran 100 meters to score on the back of it.

To make matters worse for the Dragons, it wasn’t the only opportunity they bombed.

Poor final passes and miscommunication saw several try-scoring chances go begging, leaving the struggling Red V with back-to-back losses coming out of Magic Round.

Despite a late surge in the pouring rain, and a final-play captain’s challenge to keep their hopes alive, the Dragons couldn’t claw back the deficit.

Mal Meninga called the Su’A moment “a killer” for the Dragons after a match which could have easily gone the Dragons way.

Meanwhile, Benji Marshall’s Tigers continue their surprise resurgence, claiming their fifth win of the season and their second in a row after last week’s golden point thriller against the Sharks.

The Wests Tigers now sit back inside the top eight, deposing the Dragons to 10th on the NRL live ladder.

Tigers fullback Jahream Bula was the hero of the night, running a monstrous 251 metres and scoring what will go down as one of the season’s most extraordinary tries.

“I’ve just seen the ball come loose and I picked it up… I was sort of looking at the ref to blow the whistle, but he didn’t, so I just kept running and backed myself,” Bula told Fox League post-match.

“That’s probably one of the toughest games I’ve played,” he said trying to catch his breath.

Jarome Luai and Lachlan Galvin were again instrumental in steering the team around the park, with Luai admitting there were nervous moments in the second half.

Despite leaking 18 second-half points and allowing the Dragons to break their line 10 times, the Tigers’ scramble defence stood tall when it mattered most.

“I think everyone is just connected, and everyone keeps moving and everyone keeps moving for their mate… and everyone wants to win for each other and for our community,” said Bula.

Adam Doueihi, was happy to get the win but wasn’t entirely pleased: “We have a lot of work to do going into Melbourne next week.”

Shane Flanagan, who was in the spotlight this week for his changes to the squad, said in the post-match press conference: “Obviously what happened just before half time end up being the turning point.”

“But it wasn’t to be. I love in the second half that we showed some grit to come back and get them, because we could have.”

“We had opportunities to nail it in the back end and we just couldn’t do it. It’s disappointing that way,” he said.

As for Su’A, commentators and fans alike couldn’t help but feel for him.

“Now, Jayden Su’A – I want to go down and give the poor guy a hug,” Vossy said.

“The poor bloke.”

NRL Jaydn Su'A

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