Saints slay Warriors in savage style
ST GEORGE continued their late charge towards the semi-finals with a stunning 47-14 win over Auckland in the Australian Rugby League premiership yesterday.
The Dragons won their fourth straight game in devastating style, scoring eight tries to silence a capacity crowd of nearly 30,000 in Auckland. Only days after announcing the club had shelved plans to merge with the Sydney City Roosters and would continue as a separate entity in 1996, the Dragons produced their best performance of the year against John Monie's Warriors. In-form forward Gorden Tallis was again dominant, scoring a marvellous 60-metre solo try. Hooker Nathan Brown also had a fine game, scoring two tries. Saints are now in equal eighth spot, but just outside the top eight on percentages.
The Cronulla Sharks maintained their belated charge for a top-four berth with a battling 24-14 defeat of Illawarra. But the Sharks trailed 14-12 midway through the match before a 90 metre intercept from skipper Andrew Ettingshausen turned the tide. The Sydney Bulldogs assured themselves of a finals berth with a 32-20 win over Gold Coast. But coach Chris Anderson was far from impressed with his side's performance against a 12-man Seagulls side.
Gold Coast second-rower Darren Wolens was sent off for a high tackle after just 20 minutes, with the scores locked at 0-0 at that stage. Joint premiership leaders Canberra and Manly both racked up big wins away from home over lowly-ranked opposition. Canberra smacked Souths 46-12, while Manly disposed of the Sydney Tigers 56-10.
Hard-running second-rower Steve Menzies scored three tries for Manly, while full-back Brett Mullins bagged two for Canberra, as did mobile second-rower Jason Croker and Fijian international winger Noa Nadruka. Newcastle showed no sign of a return to form, struggling to a 19-12 win over Parramatta.
Knights coach Mal Reilly declared after the game that his team needed to lift itself out of its slump - and quickly. 'We are playing without any urgency and it is a real worry,' Reilly said. Fijian international centre Fili Seru scored two tries to lead South Queensland to a 22-6 win over North Queensland.
A late inclusion in the Crushers' side, Seru dazzled the Cowboys with his speed and skills.
