St George Illawarra have opened their account for the 2023 NRL Telstra Women's Premiership season following a 38-12 win over the Eels at WIN Stadium on Saturday.
Dragons halves Tyla Nathan-Wong and Raecene McGregor had the ball on a string as the pair combined to lead the new-look Red V to their first victory under Jamie Soward this season.
A double to Cortez Te Pou and tries to Margot Vella and Teagan Berry set up a 20-4 half-time lead before the Red V went on with the game in the second half despite the Eels crossing twice in quick succession.
McGregor, the reigning Dally M Medallist, was in everything, laying on two tries with cross-field kicks for rookie winger Te Pou and producing a 40/30 kick that led to Berry’s second try of the afternoon.
The Dragons were given prime field possession early off an Eels forward pass in the first set of the match which saw Vella score on her NRLW debut after a long ball from Nathan-Wong in the second minute.
Teagan Berry try 31st minute
Poor discipline from the Dragons invited the Eels to hit back in the corner through Cassey Tohi-Hiku in the 12th minute, with four penalties against the Dragons in the first 15 minutes of the half.
The Eels gained valuable field possession after a slick 40/30 from halfback Rosemarie Beckett, however, it took a brilliant tackle on Rueben Cherrington over the line to stop the Eels from hitting the front.
Tyla Nathan-Wong try 68th minute
Te Pou extended the lead for the Dragons after catching a cross-field kick from McGregor. Nathan-Wong was unable to convert out-wide leaving the score 8-4.
McGregor continued a strong performance laying on an inside pass for Berry to score just before half-time and with all the momentum, the Dragons marched 83 metres down field in the next set which saw Te Pou cross again.
After a passive start from both sides to the second half, it was Vella who bagged a second in the corner in the 42nd minute, with Nathan-Wong unable to convert out wide with goal-kicking the only blemish of her afternoon.
A penalty for the Eels got them back on the board with Abbi Church slicing through the defence and finding Mahalia Murphy out wide in the 47th minute for her first try in the NRLW.
The Eels went back-to-back when Beckett put in a perfectly weighted kick for Monique Donovan to ground centimetres before the dead-ball line but any hint of a comeback was halted by poor goal-kicking, leaving the score at 24-12.
A forward pass from the Eels halted brief momentum created and the Dragons took advantage to crash over the line in the 55th minute through Roxy Murdoch.
Berry's second of the afternoon added class before McGregor laid on another successful cross-field kick for halves partner Nathan-Wong in the 68th minute to seal a big win.
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Match Snapshot
- The Dragons remain undefeated against the Eels in the NRLW after their third-straight win. It was also the biggest win against their rivals in NRLW history.
- Dragons wingers Cortez Te Pou and Margot Vella enjoyed their NRLW debuts, crossing for doubles each in the victory. Te Pou and Vella are only the third and fourth NRLW players to score a brace of tries on debut following Chelsea Baker (Broncos 2018) and Emily Bass (Broncos 2021).
- Dragons fullback Teagan Berry has now scored four tries in two NRLW games this season to regain the lead in the all-time list.
- Nathan-Wong also had an impressive outing laying on two try assists and two-line break assists.
- Dragons centre Bobbi Law ran for 197 metres and 105 post contact metres.
- Eels forward Talesha O’Neill ran 140 metres with the ball in a beaten side, the most by any forward in the match.
- The official crowd attendance was 7820.
Play of the Game
Maddison Weatherall produced a bone-rattling hit forcing an error from Kennedy Cherrington in the 29th minute. The possession from the error lead to a crucial try to Berry in the next set, putting the Dragons ahead 14-4.
It's on in Wollongong
What they said
"I haven't seen another number seven [McGregor] in the NRLW kick a ball like that and score tries like that. For me, as a [former] half watching that, the skills and practice of that for us to get that on the money and then for the wingers to be able to do it in front of a big crowd, you know, it was really cool. That's why you coach, to see that kind of cool stuff. We've got some really good players here. The thing I love about Flash's [Teagan Berry] game today, she competed, she turned up on a play, she played really well. It's nice to be able to have that speed and excitement at the back, and bringing the ball back and stuff. She saved a try in the first half and that's what I judge her off. I love having her at fullback." - Dragons coach Jamie Soward.
"We've just got patient there and, at the same time, it's given some young people in our team an opportunity to develop their game and grow and they'll learn their lessons from. We've got some girls in there with inexperience at this level and they're learning fast what it takes to be an NRLW player." - Eels coach Dean Widders.
NRLW Press Conference: Dragons v Eels - Round 2, 2023
What's next
The Dragons face a five-day turnaround ahead of a clash against the Roosters at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Thursday night. Parramatta will prepare to take on the Knights on Sunday at CommBank Stadium.