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The Bulldogs defeated the Roosters 32-20. They were never going to lose this match. In fact, they had it under control from the first tackle of the match, when they picked up Rooster centre Aiden Guerra and tossed him over the sideline like he was unwanted litter on the field of play.
That single action showed where the Bulldogs were coming from; and it pretty much summed up where the Roosters players' heads are at right at the moment.
The Bulldogs won this game with a couple of 10-minute surges that saw them hold 18-point and 16-point leads at different times in each half of football.
Hands up: Mitchell Aubusson fends off Josh Morris. Photo: Getty Images
The rest of the time you got the impression the Dogs were trying to expend as little energy as possible to get the victory. They would dominate for a while, then for no real reason go into these periods of lethargy, seemingly over-confident that the Roosters didn't have the necessary goods in attack to mount a serious challenge.
The Bulldogs' defence was full of energy in the first 15 minutes of each half. Once they'd established their healthy leads, they throttled back on the power and allowed the Roosters some practice time with the ball.
The problem for the Bulldogs was that the Roosters were able to accept the invitation just before half-time to post two quick tries and get themselves back in the contest – at least on the scoreboard.
The game may have been closer in the second half, too, had the Roosters been allowed any one of a couple of disallowed tries. Both decisions were correct, but teams are playing Russian Roulette when they start start relying on the Bunker as their 14th defender.
The shining light for the victors was the high intensity performance of their five-eighth Josh Reynolds. He was absolutely everywhere, all afternoon.
The big Bulldog forwards toiled away admirably. You always had the impression they could up the ante at any time if required. They controlled the ball well, completing 34 of their allotted 39 opportunities in possession. That's good enough to win most games these days. They got the job done, but I wouldn't declare it a stellar performance.
As it was, the final result will show the Bulldogs scored 5 tries to the Roosters 4. The wider margin created by some excellent goal kicking from young centre Kerrod Holland who was 100 per cent perfect with the boot.
The Roosters? It wasn't good. Probably the best thing you could say is that they kept trying and didn't give up – but there's no pats on the back just for that. Trying hard and competing until the end are a "given" at this level of the game. It's a non-negotiable requirement.
The execution from the Roosters was awful. They completed only 22 of their 37 opportunities in possession. They turned the ball over to their opponents with soft errors far too often. You are not going to win any NRL game with stats like the ones they produced in this match.
My overriding impression of this team recently is that many of the individuals are totally down on confidence. They are making everything look difficult. It's hard to watch.
There are flashes of brilliance, but the vast majority of these come when young Latrell Mitchell comes into the play. To be honest, it's a bit embarrassing for a lot of the other players when an 18-year-old rookie is the only one taking the fight up to the opposition.
The Roosters look and play like victims at the moment. During the off-season they said goodbye to the likes of Roger Tuivasa-Sheck, James Moloney and Michael Jennings, who all moved on to rival NRL clubs. They started 2016 with Mitchell Pearce and Jared Waera-Hargreaves unavailable through suspension and injury. They got themselves back at the tail of the competition ladder from round one and the challenge of winning enough games for the rest of the season to play finals football looks to many of them like a mountain too high to climb.
In their defence, this club has been sailing high over recent years, winning three minor premierships in a row. They have been playing top level football in high intensity games for a long time now. If anything, the club looks a little tired.
It's hard to be great all the time. Anyway, it certainly looks like it in their football just at the moment. They need to redirect their current thinking, wipe the slate clean and start their season all over again.
All in all, the Bulldogs did enough to get the job done. This team has enough ability to hop on one leg and qualify for finals football.
Frustratingly for their coach and fans, that's exactly what they tend to do. They are much better than what they're showing at present.
By Phil Gould.
Read more: http://www.smh.com.au
That single action showed where the Bulldogs were coming from; and it pretty much summed up where the Roosters players' heads are at right at the moment.
The Bulldogs won this game with a couple of 10-minute surges that saw them hold 18-point and 16-point leads at different times in each half of football.
Hands up: Mitchell Aubusson fends off Josh Morris. Photo: Getty Images
The rest of the time you got the impression the Dogs were trying to expend as little energy as possible to get the victory. They would dominate for a while, then for no real reason go into these periods of lethargy, seemingly over-confident that the Roosters didn't have the necessary goods in attack to mount a serious challenge.
The Bulldogs' defence was full of energy in the first 15 minutes of each half. Once they'd established their healthy leads, they throttled back on the power and allowed the Roosters some practice time with the ball.
The problem for the Bulldogs was that the Roosters were able to accept the invitation just before half-time to post two quick tries and get themselves back in the contest – at least on the scoreboard.
The game may have been closer in the second half, too, had the Roosters been allowed any one of a couple of disallowed tries. Both decisions were correct, but teams are playing Russian Roulette when they start start relying on the Bunker as their 14th defender.
The shining light for the victors was the high intensity performance of their five-eighth Josh Reynolds. He was absolutely everywhere, all afternoon.
The big Bulldog forwards toiled away admirably. You always had the impression they could up the ante at any time if required. They controlled the ball well, completing 34 of their allotted 39 opportunities in possession. That's good enough to win most games these days. They got the job done, but I wouldn't declare it a stellar performance.
As it was, the final result will show the Bulldogs scored 5 tries to the Roosters 4. The wider margin created by some excellent goal kicking from young centre Kerrod Holland who was 100 per cent perfect with the boot.
The Roosters? It wasn't good. Probably the best thing you could say is that they kept trying and didn't give up – but there's no pats on the back just for that. Trying hard and competing until the end are a "given" at this level of the game. It's a non-negotiable requirement.
The execution from the Roosters was awful. They completed only 22 of their 37 opportunities in possession. They turned the ball over to their opponents with soft errors far too often. You are not going to win any NRL game with stats like the ones they produced in this match.
My overriding impression of this team recently is that many of the individuals are totally down on confidence. They are making everything look difficult. It's hard to watch.
There are flashes of brilliance, but the vast majority of these come when young Latrell Mitchell comes into the play. To be honest, it's a bit embarrassing for a lot of the other players when an 18-year-old rookie is the only one taking the fight up to the opposition.
The Roosters look and play like victims at the moment. During the off-season they said goodbye to the likes of Roger Tuivasa-Sheck, James Moloney and Michael Jennings, who all moved on to rival NRL clubs. They started 2016 with Mitchell Pearce and Jared Waera-Hargreaves unavailable through suspension and injury. They got themselves back at the tail of the competition ladder from round one and the challenge of winning enough games for the rest of the season to play finals football looks to many of them like a mountain too high to climb.
In their defence, this club has been sailing high over recent years, winning three minor premierships in a row. They have been playing top level football in high intensity games for a long time now. If anything, the club looks a little tired.
It's hard to be great all the time. Anyway, it certainly looks like it in their football just at the moment. They need to redirect their current thinking, wipe the slate clean and start their season all over again.
All in all, the Bulldogs did enough to get the job done. This team has enough ability to hop on one leg and qualify for finals football.
Frustratingly for their coach and fans, that's exactly what they tend to do. They are much better than what they're showing at present.
By Phil Gould.
Read more: http://www.smh.com.au
