2007 Round 21 vs St George Illawarra Dragons:

St George Illawarra 20 defeated Newcastle 4.

Newcastle fought hard, but couldn’t pull off a win over St George Illawarra in round 21’s opening match. Newcastle displayed some impressive defence at stages against the Dragons, but couldn’t muster any points themselves, slumping to their fourth consecutive loss.

The Dragon’s first try was full of the sort of luck that has deserted the Knights in recent times. A Luke Walsh kick was charged down from 40 metres out, chased by Simon Woolford who put a dreadful kick on it, which somehow fell perfectly for Jamie Soward to force the ball millimetres inside the dead-ball line.

Newcastle’s goal-line defence continued to hold solid, but eventually cracked when Dan hunt forced his way over from close range in the 28th minute, giving St George Illawarra a 10-0 lead.

Newcastle got back in the game early in the second half when Kurt Gidley worked wonders to split the Dragons, and then force the ball in the corner despite a wealth of opposition.

But two late tries to the Dragons sealed the match – first Chase Stanley crossed out wide in the 70th minute, and Tom Hewitt grabbed a Kurt Gidley grubber and raced 95 metres to put the icing on the cake in the 77th.

Newcastle continue to limp towards the end of the season, but the experience the younger players are gaining will be invaluable in 2008.

What they said:

Brian Smith:
"They had 116 plays in the first half and we had 64. We had 11 in their half and they had 82 in ours."
"I thought our blokes did a great job. At one stage in the second half we were a chance of winning the game. It would have been a miracle turnaround to win, with all of the pressure that had been on us."
"We got our mandatory one penalty in the first half, which was terrific. But we didn't find touch with it. I didn't know whether to laugh or cry."