Wests Tigers vs Cowboys

In the inaugural Magic Round of 2019, Wests Tigers were tasked with facing the lowly Penrith Panthers, who had won just two of their first eight matches.

The joint-venture got away to a magical start, scoring four tries in the opening ten minutes as Moses Mbye, Luke Brooks, Esan Marsters and Corey Thompson each crossed for a four-pointer.

Luke Brooks soon connected with Robert Jennings on a perfectly-placed cut-out pass that allowed his winger the stroll over for his first try of the match, before Esan Marsters extended the first-half lead beyond four converted tries.

The scoring dried up in the second half but a pair of try-saving tackles from Moses Mbye on Josh Mansour ensured that the Panthers would remain at bay.

Esan Marsters latched onto a deft grubber kick from Luke Brooks in the 67th minute to seal the victory and place the cherry on top of a polished performance from Michael Maguire’s men.

With the pandemic forcing Magic Round to be cancelled in 2020, Wests Tigers were eager to get back to Brisbane and chalk up a much needed victory against the Newcastle Knights last year.

The black-and-gold provided their fans with a sense of déjà vu as they got off to another quick start, with Tommy Talau busting through the line and sending Luke Brooks away to score a scintillating long-range try in the fourth minute.

An error at the back allowed James Tamou to extend the lead before David Nofoaluma brought the magic with an acrobatic touchdown over the right corner post.

After being shifted back into the centres, Adam Doueihi soon dummied his way through the line to cross for his first try of the night as Wests Tigers took a 24-4 lead into the break.

Normal service resumed in the second half as Joseph Leilua sent Tommy Talau over with an audacious flick pass, while another Newcastle error gifted Doueihi his second of the night.

Two late Newcastle tries proved to be little more than consolation efforts as the joint-venture marched to a dominant victory in front of over 35,000 fans.