NYC Rd 22 Roosters 16 Dragons 28

by NRL

The Roosters NYC team have suffered a 28-16 loss to the St George Illawarra Dragons in their Round 22 clash at Allianz Stadium.

The Dragons held a 10-6 lead at the break after a tight first half, but blew the Roosters away in the opening stages of the second half to take the points.

It was the visitors who came out firing in this clash, scoring in just the third minute through Jamie Stanley for a 4-0 lead.

They remained dominant for most of the opening period, but in the 22nd minute Brendan Elliot struck back for the Roosters, pushing them into the lead 6-4.

The lead didn't last long however, as Craig Garvey hit back for the Dragons in the 26th minute to put them back in the lead 10-6, which is the way it would remain until the half time break.

With all the momentum in the game, the Dragons scored again straight after the break when Adam Quinlan grounded a grubber by Jared Allen to extend the visitor's lead to 16-6 in the 44th minute.

It was made 20-6 not long after, when Kayne Brennan took advantage of some good work by his inside men to score, followed up by a penalty to Daniel Burke extending their lead to 22-6.

The Roosters wouldn't fall away though, with Usaia O'Sullivan snatching a bomb out of the air to score a great try and keep the Tricolours in the game at 22-10 in the 65th minute.

They went back-to-back in the 68th minute when halfback Riley Jacks scored to narrow the gap to 22-16, making it game on.

But with the game on the line, Dragons centre Charly Runicman scored a long range try in the 73rd minute to seal the game 28-16.

Despite the result, the Roosters remain in 6th position in the NYC ladder, ahead of a big game against Parramatta next Saturday.

ST GEORGE ILLAWARRA DRAGONS 28
(J Stanley, C Garvey, A Quinlan, K Brennan, C Runciman Tries; D Burke 4/6 Goals)
Defeated
SYDNEY ROOSTERS 16
(B Elliot, U O'Sullivan, R Jacks Tries; B Elliot 2/3 Goals)

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