CRUCIAL NO-CALL COULD OPEN UP ‘DIVING’ CAN OF WORMS

For the second week in a row, the Titans were involved in some late game drama and once again it was Jayden Campbell at the forefront.

Campbell was the goalkicker the Penrith trainer ran in front of last weekend. Eight days later, it was Campbell who was collected high in a 79th minute tackle right in front of the posts with his side trailing by two points.

The Rabbitohs weren’t penalised and held onto win the game, but they could consider themselves a little lucky the Titans and Campbell weren’t given the chance to tie it up and send it to golden point.

Fox League’s Steve Roach said in commentary the Titans should have been awarded a penalty, as did Matty Johns.

While it wasn’t a vicious high tackle by any means with little force involved, Rabbitohs forward Tom Fletcher did hit Campbell high.

Had the Bunker taken a closer look at the incident, the penalty would have been given and the Titans likely level the scores at 20.

Instead, Campbell didn’t give the Bunker a chance to do so as he quickly got up to play the ball.

Johns credited Campbell for not diving or milking for a penalty.

“Fair play to Jayden Campbell. I want to give him a rap here,” Johns said on Sunday Night with Matty Johns.

“There was a high shot from Tom Fletcher. There wasn’t a lot in it but if Jayden stays down there, they level up. There’s no doubt about it, but good on him for getting up on his feet.”

Eels legend Nathan Hindmarsh believed the right call was made.

“In all seriousness, that’s how it should be. He got a brush across the face,” Hindmarsh said before Bryan Fletcher asked if the importance of the game would play a factor on if a player stayed down after a questionable tackle.

“Devil’s advocate here. This is a semi-final going into a grand final?” Fletcher said.

“The referee would not blow the whistle on something that light. Surely not,” Hindmarsh replied.

Campbell’s coach Des Hasler was even asked about his halfback’s actions and if he was proud that Campbell got straight back up.

“I can’t put words or thoughts into people’s minds so I’m not going to get into hypotheticals,” Hasler said.

“It doesn’t do anything. It doesn’t change anything.”

TEDESCO FLEXES DALLY M MUSCLE IN ROUT OF DOLPHINS

James Tedesco is arguably in the midst of his greatest season in first grade at the age of 32 after 14 seasons and 272 games in the NRL.

Tedesco had 136 run metres, five tackle busts, three offloads, a linebreak, five linebreak assists, four try assists and a classy double to lead the Roosters to a 64-12 rout of the Dolphins.

The win was made even more important because it improved their points differential and hurt the Dolphins, who are one of their main top eight rivals in that department.

Bryan Fletcher believes Tedesco has never played better in his career than in 2025, after a bounce back season following losing his Blues and Kangaroos captaincy posts last year.

“James Tedesco what a game he had up there in Brisbane,” Fletcher said on Sunday Night with Matty Johns.

“I think he is a moral for the Dally M Medal. Having seen what he did live last week against Manly, this bloke is just a phenomenon.

“I feel like this is his best season ever. I know he has had some cracker seasons, but considering it was such a young team and he lost all that experience in the off-season.

“He won the Artie Legacy Medal for the best player on the field and James Tedesco is flying.”

Matty Johns noted Tedesco has evolved from a ball runner to a playmaker, which is why he is playing better now that when he last won the Dally M Medal.

“He is well known for his motor and going through the middle tippy toeing, but is his ball playing as well now,” Johns said.

“He is so much more a complete player.”

Johns was stunned by the scope of the victory over the Dolphins but believes their casualty ward is coming back to bite them after a long season.

“I didn’t see that coming 64-12 and the Dolphins are ravaged by injuries and you can just see it is starting to catch up with them,” Johns said.

“By the same token it was a powerhouse performance from the Chooks.

“Sam Walker was terrific. You can just see now that he is fulfilling that potential we all knew he had.”

The game also saw four sin bins after Spencer Leniu sparked an all-in melee in a fiery start to the match.

“It was a feisty encounter with four sin bins and Spencer Leniu was involved but no suspensions,” Johns said.

Fletcher believes the referee went too far in sending four players off for the incident, which was a blast from the past.

“I thought it was good, I like how he shaped up it was old school, but I don’t know whether they needed to send four off,” Fletcher said.

“I think that was a bit over the top.”

The Roosters face the Bulldogs next week in a huge clash, while the Dolphins face the Broncos in a round that could decide which of the two teams plays finals.

BURTON’S BULLDOGS ANSWER CRITICS WITH WET WEATHER MASTERCLASS

The Bulldogs were 0-3 in the wet coming into their clash with the Warriors at a soggy Accor Stadium, but Matt Burton ensured they answered their critics with a kicking masterclass.

Cameron Ciraldo said during the week that he hoped it was raining, so his side could prove a point and that came to fruition in a clinical display in atrocious conditions on Saturday night.

Matty Johns has been a vocal critic of the Bulldogs’ wet weather struggles, but commended their performance against the Warriors.

“The Bulldogs were excellent winning in the wet, which was important to take them to the next level,” Johns said.

“32-14 it was a terrific win and in those conditions it can be tricky, but they still moved the football, but it was more controlled than last week against the Tigers.”

New fullback Jacob Kiraz revealed that the Bulldogs actually have the game to thrive in the wet, so it was about being honest with themselves about what hasn’t worked in their last three losses.

“It was everywhere that we couldn’t play in the rain, but at the end of the day we were losing in the rain, so we sat down and spoke about how it didn’t make sense to us,” Kiraz said.

“Our game actually suits the rain, so we sat down this week and spoke about controlling the ball and field position

“I felt like our halves Galvin and Burton did a tremendous job of kicking the ball to corners and doing what we do best.”

Marcelo Montoya agreed the criticism of the Bulldogs was fair and the team were honest in addressing the mistakes in their approach.

“It wasn’t about the media, it was more us realising that we played three games in the wet and we were 0-3,” Montoya said.

“It was more just understanding as a team what we needed to do better to get the result in the wet.”

Johns paid tribute to the Bulldogs’ halves for their kicking game, with Lachlan Galvin’s short kicks perfectly complementing Burton’s long bombs.

“Galvin was really good with his short kicking game,” Johns said.

“And I just love the utility players that just chain pass through the middle of the field.

“But some of Matt Burton’s bombs and kicks were crazy. That 20/10 he kicked was just ridiculous. The ball went from inside his 20 and landed on the 10 metre line.”

The Bulldogs face the Roosters next week in a mouth-watering clash as they aim to keep the pressure on the Raiders and Storm in the top two race.

NOTHING STRANGE ABOUT THIS PERFORMANCE

A career-first hat-trick for Raiders gun Ethan Strange stunned the Sea Eagles in Round 23.

And now the rising star is “destined” for representative honours according to one league legend, while the Kangaroos coach also made it clear he is on the selector’s radar.

The 20-year-old is one of the NRL’s best up-and-coming playmakers and broke 11 tackles, the line three times and scored a trio of tries to down Manly.

Kevin Walters signalled he would definitely be watching Strange’s finals series closely, with the young gun leading the charge for the Raiders to win the minor premiership.

“He’s one of the names that was thrown up, from my experience with the Kangaroos someone through that finals series gets on a bit of a run,” Walters said on Fox League.

“They play their way into the Australian side because of their form. He’s one certainly that could force his way in.

“I just like the way he runs the ball, he’s big and strong. He enjoys the contact in defence and attack… he’s a good young player.”

Meanwhile, Michael Ennis was of the belief Strange could come in contention for an Origin debut next season.

The Blues went down in a decider earlier this year, with the pairing of Nathan Cleary and Jarome Luai unable to inspire NSW to victor in Game II and III.

While Mitchell Moses could be fit and was the favoured selection in the series opener, Nicho Hynes could also come into the equation.

Meanwhile, fellow rising star Isaiya Katoa is also pressing his case to partner Cleary, who is widely considered the best playmaker in the game.

“Strange is charging towards representative jerseys… he was absolutely brilliant, best on ground. I think he’s destined to play Origin next year,” Ennis said.

WARNING OVER PANTHERS WIN STREAK AS PREMIERS CRACK TOP FOUR

The four-time defending premiers the Panthers are in the top four for the first time this season after their 48-12 win over the Knights and the Warriors’ loss to the Bulldogs.

However, Michael Ennis believes the Panthers desperately need some quality opposition before the finals, so their young players can test themselves under pressure before a tilt at a fifth straight title.

“It’s the period they’ve needed desperately coming up,” Ennis said.

“The teams they’ve played over the last five weeks have all been near the bottom.

“Their test coming up over the next three weeks is exactly the test Ivan would want as a coach heading into the finals.

“Storm, Raiders, Bulldogs is the dress rehearsal that this side needs, for no other reason than to continue to give them confidence. That’s it.

“I don’t think there’s any evidence that he’s looking for in terms of whether his game model holds up. He knows it does and he’s starting to prime himself.

“It’s more just for the individuals, particularly the young ones. You know that Nathan and Brian To’o and Dylan Edwards are ready for finals.”

Cleary has been in red hot form since the Origin series loss and is excited to test himself and the team against the top sides at the business end of the year starting with the Storm next up.

“It’s really exciting, along with the Bulldogs and Raiders, they’ve been the benchmark of the competition this season,” Cleary said.

“They’re in really good form at the moment so it’s a good test for us.

“It’s been nice to string a few wins together but we probably haven’t versed a team in the top four since that Bulldogs game so looking forward to that test as it’s always a good battle with the Storm.”

SHARKS ONCE AGAIN FAIL TO DELIVER WITH ‘EVERYTHING TO PLAY FOR’

There should be real concerns over Cronulla’s premiership aspirations after the hot-and-cold Sharks failed to get the job against inferior opposition over the weekend.

The Sharks were favoured to defeat the Dragons at home on Saturday, but despite boasting several opportunities in attack, they could only score two tries in a 22-14 loss.

Cronulla had a golden opportunity to consolidate a top eight spot and keep their top four hopes alive, but failed to deliver.

“You really have to question their mentality. Going into this game, was there any complacency because the Dragons just wanted it more,” rugby league legend Mal Meninga said.

While Cronulla have a talented team on paper and have finished in the top eight in all of the previous three seasons, there’s a feeling around the league they aren’t genuine enough to contest for a premiership.

NRL Hall of Famer Cooper Cronk was left unimpressed with what the Sharks dished up, criticising the lack of consistency from Craig Fitzgibbon’s men.

“The Sharks are a finals team but they are so inconsistent. When you think they’ve turned a corner, they take a step back,” Cronk said.

“It’s just disappointing that the Sharks had an opportunity to step up and solidify a finals spot, they put in an error-riddled performance.

“The Sharks I think today showed us why they aren’t a top four team,” Braith Anasta added.

“They had everything to play for and it was one of their worst performances of the year. That may be a little bit harsh but they gave themselves no chance.”