5 Big Things: Everything we learned in NRL Round 7

A brilliant long weekend of ANZAC footy has seen a number of sides rocket up the competition ladder, whilst others have been left with some soul-searching to do as Origin talk begins ramping up. Here are 5 Big Things we learned from Round 7.

Talakai’s meteoric rise

Shifting Siosifa Talakai into the centres has proven a masterstroke on Craig Fitzgibbon’s behalf with the Sharks wrecking ball capping off a remarkable month with an absurd display on Thursday night against Manly. The 25-year-old notched a pair a four-pointers, assisted on a trio of others, took 20 carries for 262 metres, made three line breaks and eight tackle breaks in one of the most devastating individual performances in recent memory. His opposite Morgan Harper endured a night that he will be eager to erase from his memory, making just five tackles and missing three before being hooked at halftime. The sight of a futile Harper reeling in Talakai’s wake will not soon be forgotten by Cronulla fans who are rejoicing the emergence of a new cult hero. In four games since making the move to left centre in place of the injured Connor Tracey, Talakai has averaged 209 run metres and has totalled 38 tackle breaks, to along with four tries and six try assists.

60-minute Dogs

Since Trent Barrett made the move to Belmore, the Bulldogs have lost 26 of their 30 clashes. They have endured arguably the toughest period in the club’s history and are still yet to reap the rewards of their offseason recruitment drive. They are currently sitting at the bottom of the competition ladder and are the only side in the premiership without multiple wins this season. On Friday night against Brisbane, they looked poised to snap their five-game losing streak, leading 14-6 with less than half-an-hour left in the contest. The final 25 minutes, however, saw Brisbane run in five unanswered tries to come away with a 34-14 win. It wasn’t all bad for the Dogs; they were the better side for the first hour of the game. Josh Addo-Carr came up with the first double of his Bulldogs career to go along with a team-high 171 run metres, whilst his centre Aaron Schoupp ran for 166 metres himself from a team-high 19 carries, laid on a try, and played a role in containing the ever-dangerous Kotoni Staggs for much of the night. The night still ended in a loss, however, and, with a Saturday evening showdown against the Roosters looming, the Dogs risk themselves falling further behind the pack.

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Disappointing Titans search for answers

After coming within inches of a qualifying final upset in 2021, the Gold Coast Titans have managed just a pair of wins from their first seven encounters of 2022 and have slumped to a three straight losses. Their Round 7 defeat – a 26-point beating at the hands of North Queensland – has raised many questions over the state of the side. They are currently conceding over 23 points per contest and will face the Panthers and Roosters over the next fortnight. Head coach Justin Holbrook shifted marquee man David Fifita to the centres against North Queensland, with the 22-year-old managing just 11 carries for 97 metres and looking shaky defensively. For their clash against Penrith, Fifita has been shifted back onto an edge and AJ Brimson has been moved back into the number-one jumper for the first time this season. Expectations were high on the Gold Coast coming into 2022 and they are yet to deliver. They are currently ranked in the bottom-half of the premiership in points scored, points conceded, run metres, kick metres and errors.

Astonishing fortnight in Tiger Town

Two weeks ago, the Wests Tigers were a club in chaos. At 0-5 and fresh off a 26-point drubbing against Cronulla, few positions across the club looked overly secure. Back-to-back one-point wins over quality opponents, however, have rejuvenated the proud club as they look to win their third on trot against the Dragons in Wollongong on Sunday. It was a Luke Brooks field goal that proved the difference against last year’s grand finalists South Sydney on Saturday night. They have now rocketed up to 13th on the competition ladder after a stint as short-priced wooden spoon favourites. Offseason signing Jackson Hastings was superb again, getting his hands on the ball an insane 102 times, as he took 23 carries for 145 metres and finished with a game-high 483 kick metres. Wingers David Nofoaluma and Ken Maumalo were terrific, combining for a trio of tries and 319 run metres, whilst skipper James Tamou was the pick of the forwards, taking 17 carries for 159 metres and making 30 tackles without a miss.

ANZAC Day brilliance

One of the highlights of the rugby league calendar, the game’s annual ANZAC Day fixtures are always noteworthy. The two annual clashes – Dragons-Roosters in Sydney and Storm-Warriors in Melbourne – were at opposite ends of the spectrum this year but were action-packed nonetheless. The day kicked off with a rousing ceremony at the Sydney Cricket Ground followed by a dominant first-half which saw the Dragons run out to a 14-nil lead. Tries to Francis Molo and Jaydn Su’A gave the Dragons some early momentum, whilst their defence was surprisingly resolute. The Roosters dominated the final 40 minutes but a gutsy, banged-up Dragons side earnt a valuable two points. Ben Hunt took home the Ashton Collier Spirit of ANZAC Medal after assisting on a pair of tries, kicking a 40/20, and coming up with a collection of effort plays that helped his side limp over the finish-line. Fans were treated to an attacking masterclass in the later game, with the Melbourne Storm walloping the Warriors 70 points to 10. Four tries to Xavier Coates along with doubles to Nick Meaney, Ryan Papenhuyzen, and Jahrome Hughes helped propel the Storm to the NRL’s first 70-point game in nearly 14 years. Papenhuyzen’s double combined with three try assists, five goals and 158 run metres helped him jump to outright first on the Dally M leaderboard, having notched 15 of an available 21 Dally M points through Round 7. The Warriors, meanwhile, slumped to their heaviest defeat in club history, all whilst losing Josh Curran and Dallin Watene-Zelezniak to injury.

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