NRL 2022

The Panthers had to do it the hard way against a dogged Sharks side in miserable conditions last Saturday, and for the first time all year are presented with the motivation of facing an opponent who currently has the wood on them. 

The Eels have suffered two defeats at CommBank Stadium this year, while the Panthers have won in five of their seven visits to the venue, with one of those losses coming against Parramatta in 2020. 

According to The Daily Telegraph, the 32-year-old is set to sign with the Parramatta Eels, with the August 1 deadline looming.

Reports suggest the Eels have the salary cap space left to sign the Kiwi International and have until Monday to confirm any deal.

Despite their current slump the Storm remain just two points adrift of the top four and have it all to play for, while the Warriors will be motivated to give their home fans something to cheer about in their second game at Mt Smart Stadium this year. 

The last time they met on Anzac Day the Storm scored 10 tries in the second half to run out 70-10 winners, and the Warriors haven't beaten Melbourne since 2015.

The Roosters' flyers were at their best with Joey Manu chalking up a try and 188 run metres on his return from injury and Daniel Tupou also crossing the line and carrying the ball for 203 metres.

An early dangerous tackle by Alfred Smalley on debut proved costly for the hosts as the Roosters opened the scoring in the fourth minute with a penalty goal.

Four minutes later the Roosters extended their lead when winger Daniel Tupou finished off some slick hands from Victor Radley, Luke Keary and Sam Walker to extend the lead to 8-0.

The Sea Eagles (9th) and Roosters (8th) are two of those sides along with the Raiders (10th) and Dragons (11th), so this showdown between the boys from Sydney's northern beaches and the Bondi brigade has massive ramifications.

It feels like an eternity since the Roosters downed Manly 26-12 in round two at the SCG, both sides battling injuries to star players and bouts of inconsistency since then but remaining well and truly in the hunt for September.

In the 37 meetings between the two sides in the NRL era, the Sea Eagles hold a slight 20-17 advantage.

After leaving the field eight minutes into last Friday’s clash with the Roosters, following a high shot which saw him fall and hit his head on the ground, Ponga said the rugby league community has rallied around him this week, with Storm star Ryan Papenhuyzen – who has faced his own concussion issues in recent times – among those to reach out.

Ponga said while his desire is to play again this year for Newcastle, he isn’t getting his hopes up.   

The former Cowboy, Panther, Shark and Bronco will run onto the field on Thursday for the first time since 2019, when he received a 20-month suspension after testing positive for a prohibited substance. The positive test allegedly came after using a housemate’s blender.

The Sea Eagles announced players would wear the rainbow-adorned jersey to promote the inclusion of the LGBTQ community in rugby league during their round 20 NRL game against the Roosters at Brookvale Oval.

However, just hours after the jersey was unveiled, Nine's Danny Weidler revealed that a number of players were seriously considering withdrawing from the game.

After an emergency meeting on Monday night, the seven confirmed they would not play.

After falling behind 10-0 early, the Panthers slowly worked their way back into the game and had the class to grind out their 17th victory of the season.

The Sharks made the ideal start a Matt Moylan bomb was tapped back to Jesse Ramien who found Connor Tracey and the winger stepped off his right foot and beat four Panthers defenders to score in the corner after eight minutes.

With his side trailing 14-0 at the break, Wighton kicked a pair of 40/20s in the second period, both of which led directly to tries, and put his team in position to record their fourth-straight win at home at GIO Stadium. 

Corey Harawira-Naera contributed plenty as well, with two tries off the bench, while fellow Kiwi big man Joseph Tapine powered to 189 metres in the middle of the park.