NRL Conclusions: Baffling bunker errors, Madge’s future and the last chance saloon

This was a round that looked backwards and forwards at the same time.

1995 was all the rage on Sunday as Canterbury underlined their Premiership credentials and celebrated the 30th anniversary of their famous triumph at the Sydney Football Stadium, while 500 was the magic number for Des Hasler as the legendary coach brought up a half millennium of first grade fixtures with a win in Auckland.

At the other end, there was a technological innovation that showed where the game (or at least the Bunker) might be going, as well as a major look to the future as the young Raiders all-but inked themselves into the top four.

Speaking of that finals race – let’s start there this week.

A good week for…

The top four race, which is back on big style thanks to an unusual set of results.

Well, some usual, some not: there was a widespread expectation that the Sharks and Panthers would get the job done to keep themselves in the hunt for the finals, but they wouldn’t have expected it to lift them into contention for the step above that.

But thanks to a shock in Auckland, where the Titans downed the Warriors, that is now very much on the cards. 

The night before, the Broncos should have put themselves in pole position to take over, but lost at home to Parramatta (more on which later), leaving the door ajar for Cronulla and now Penrith to step through.

In the last four seasons, 16 wins has been enough to make the top four, which affords the crucial second shot in the finals. 

The Wahs remain in situ on 12, but have still to go to Canterbury and Manly, as well as hosting the Dolphins next week.

The Panthers have the Titans and Knights – two wins, then – before the tough stuff starts with the top three back to back to back.

Cronulla are probably the big winners: they only have one team left with something to play for, and that’s the Dogs on the final weekend, when they are likely to rest stars.

A bad week for…

Manly and the Roosters, who enter the last chance saloon next week.

The Sea Eagles could well have their season on the line without half a forward pack. 

Haumole Olakau’atu put his shoulder out again in his first game back from a previous dislocation and if he plays again this season, he’ll be lucky.

Matt Lodge, who clattered Jaeman Salmon late in their loss to the Bulldogs, may have some judiciary trouble. Don’t count out issues for Toff Sipley, too, who was put on report for what looked like a cut-and-dried trip.

The Roosters might not be in much better shape. 

They’ll be filthy that they threw away an eminently winnable game against Melbourne. To score 30 points against the Storm and not win is criminal, especially given the late forward pass call that denied them a late winner.

During the loss, they lost half Sandon Smith to a concussion, having already lost Hugo Savala to a wrist injury, having already ditched Chad Townsend. 

They have other outs, too, and a victory fewer, and a worse differential. Easts simply have to win.

Standout…

Harry Grant is pretty much always a standout for the Storm, so much that it barely gets noticed anymore. This week was one of his best, and came at the perfect moment for his side. 

They had a huge leadership vacuum with Cameron Munster unable to start due to his father’s funeral in Queensland, Ryan Papenhuyzen still injured, Nelson Asofa-Solomona suspended and, during the game, Jahrome Hughes departing with a dislocated shoulder.

For their hooker to turn up with two try assists plus one for himself was huge to an attack that has often looked for stars above structure, as was the 37 tackles in the middle – a full eight more than any teammate and the most on ground.

This was a game the Storm had little right to win. It was a bit stop-start, with six sets fewer than the average NRL game, and the Roosters came to play with their season on the line.

Melbourne wobbled, but got the job done – with their inspirational hooker the star. As Hughes will now miss six weeks of the run-in, they’ll need him to do it again.

Washout…

It would have been a bad week for Brisbane, who lost in embarrassing circumstances at home to Parramatta, but in practical terms, they stood still as the Warriors managed to do the same a day later with the Titans.

This was the perfect chance to sneak into the top four, but for far from the first time this year, the Bronx choked badly. 

They’ve lost Parramatta, St George Illawarra and Souths now, as well as defeats to Penrith and the Roosters at times when they were playing dreadfully. 

This all falls back on coach Michael Maguire and his partner in crime, Trent Barrett. 

All the rumblings out of the Broncos (and, indeed, for years prior at Souths and the Tigers) are that Madge is far too intense to deal with the week-to-week NRL.

This wasn’t a problem in the short-form world of rep footy, first with New Zealand and then New South Wales, but it manifests here in a team that goes great when up against a big challenge – see the dual wins over the Bulldogs – but struggles to get going in games they should win.

Throw in that the Broncos are notably worse as the game goes on and you have a major problem.

Barrett, for his part, was often accused of over-coaching his Bulldogs attack, but appears to do the opposite here. 

This Broncos side, who were one of the best at balancing structure and improvisation when Lee Briers ran the offence, look like they’re just waiting for someone to take on the mantle of creativity.

They had more sets and made over 200 more metres, but managed the same number of line breaks and tries – one of which was an interception. 

It’s no return for a side with the talent they have, which ultimately comes back to coaching.

Everyone is talking about…

The offside rule. Or was it camera angles?

There were two game-defining decisions that came as a result of tight offside calls on kicks – one at the Roosters that was given, one at Brisbane that was not.

The Thursday night game wasn’t settled by a call that James Tedesco was onside from a kick, but it would have been the mother of all howlers if it had been. 

The Bunker cleared him onside from a kick that was spilled, and from which a try resulted. He wasn’t, as should have been clear to Chris Butler in the hot seat. Baffling didn’t come close to covering it.

Then, a night later, Reece Walsh thought he had snuck an undeserved victory for the Broncos over Parramatta, only for the video to haul it back and throw cold water on the celebrations in Brisbane.

The controversy wasn’t so much over the rules, which are pretty clear, but rather how Butler didn’t see it.

A drone camera, available to TV but not to the officials, proved the point conclusively. 

This has been seen before a lot in soccer, where an overhead tactical camera is often used by coaches to analyse the game, with the unintended effect that it sends back almost perfect offside visuals that they can see but the referee or VAR cannot.

We had that here.

The Roosters-Storm match was at Allianz Stadium, which has this function, but as it is not always available at other grounds or, indeed, in different weather, it’s only used some of the time.

The central truth, however, is that it shouldn’t have been necessary. Butler had all the tools he needed, but dropped a huge hairy one.

But nobody mentions…

Josh Addo-Carr, though they probably should. 

The Parramatta winger notched his 150th try in the top grade to seal the deal against Brisbane on Friday night, but it passed curiously without fanfare given the enormity of the Broncos’ defeat and the unlikeliness of the Eels’ win.

A moment, then, here for the Foxx. 

He’s had a tough (let’s) trot of late, with an ignominious exit from the Bulldogs that left him out of the side just as they became good, having been the first to move to Belmore when they were truly dreadful.

Even so, his late career slow decline has still seen double figure tries every year – including those played under Trent Barrett’s Bulldogs, who were a crime against attacking footy – and a vital role in changing the culture at two clubs.

He’s leaned more into the Foxx character than Josh Addo-Carr the footy player, but it’s worth remembering the peaks too. In his pomp, he was not only a superb finisher but also one of the most exciting and likeable players in the game. 

Forward pass

We’ve talked about the Roosters’ trip to Brookvale, so instead, we’ll tackle the second finals-relevant clash of the round, with the Dolphins travelling to Auckland.

The Wahs are smarting following their poor defeat to the Titans, while the Phins are laughing after a bye round in which both of their main finals rivals lost.

Redcliffe have been all excitement, but sometimes lacking substance, whereas the Warriors are the opposite – often solid but unspectacular. 

It’s a bit of a pain that this is the 6pm Friday game – well, unless you live in New Zealand – but it should be a belter.