Bulldogs hang on to compound Tigers’ NRL woes

Canterbury have added to Wests Tigers’ early-season woes, surviving a late scare to hold on for a 26-22 win at Belmore Oval to leave the joint-venture club last on the NRL ladder.

After Canterbury led 26-6 with 13 minutes to go, the Tigers piled on three tries in as many sets to put themselves back in the match.

Brent Naden was influential as temperature reached 32C late in the match and took its toll on the players.

Naden twice put Brandon Wakeham through gaps in the lead-up to tries, while Luke Brooks dummied from his inside his own half to help Charlie Staines over for another.

Matt Burton of the Bulldogs celebrates scoring a try Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images

Staines’ try reduced the deficit to four points with nine minutes left and anything looked possible.

But it was too little too late, as errors on three of their final four sets cost the Tigers and allowed the Bulldogs to hang on.

Ultimately, the Tigers were left to regret 60 minutes of poor attack before their late comeback, with their only try in the first half coming from Naden who ran 80 metres after an intercept.

The only times they looked threatening in the first hour came when John Bateman poked his nose through the line or when Apisai Koroisau darted out of dummy-half.

But even then, there was rarely anyone looming up in support.

Brooks put a grubberkick dead in the first half and was caught with the ball on the last in the second stanza, while Bateman dropped a ball over the line on his return to the NRL.

Matters grew worse for the Tigers when David Klemmer, who was one of their best, was put on report for a cannonball tackle on Raymond Faitala-Mariner.

By the 52nd minute it prompted Tim Sheens to shake up his attacking spine, bringing Wakeham on at five-eighth and moving Adam Doueihi to fullback.

But when Matt Burton pushed through Doueihi to score moments later and set up a 20-point lead for the Bulldogs, the match looked over before the Tigers rallied late.

Canterbury, in contrast, had been dangerous in stifling conditions during the first half before their late collapse.

Two of their tries came down their electric left edge, with Paul Alamoti doing the early work and Josh Addo-Carr putting on the finishing touches.

One was the result of an Alamoti intercept from a poor Doueihi pass, while another came when Alamoti took a bomb and found open space and Addo-Carr on his outside.

The Bulldogs’ first try was also down their powerful left, when Burton swung the ball that way and Viliame Kikau offloaded back inside to Hayze Perham.

Kikau ended the match on report for a crusher tackle on Naden, in the one concern for the Bulldogs.

The win lifted them to their best start to a season since 2017 with two wins from their first three games.