Throwback Thursday: Round 15 vs Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs

After narrowly defeating the defending premiers in Round 3, Wests Tigers thumped the Bulldogs in 2005 as they continued their march towards the club’s maiden premiership.

The home side wasted no time in demonstrating its flamboyant style, with the ball passing through seven sets of hands before Paul Whatuira planted it over the try line.

Ben Galea burst through the line to score the home side’s second try before Benji Marshall and Paul Whatuira both skipped down the sideline to extend the halftime lead to 22 points.

Wests Tigers continued their momentum in the second half, with Pat Richards and Brett Hodgson scoring tries shortly after the break.

Hodgson combined with Scott Prince and Ben Galea to provide Whatuira with his third try of the night, while Prince snared a try of his own in the 70th minute.

Pat Richards capped off the victory with a try in the left corner, leaving the scoreline at 54-2. The 52-point winning margin remains the joint-largest in club history.

Wests Tigers members and fans were provided with a moment of déjà vu in 2008 as the club racked up another 52-point victory over the Bulldogs at ANZ Stadium.

Sitting just two points outside the top eight with six rounds to play, Wests Tigers put on an attacking masterclass with seven different players scoring tries for Tim Sheens’ side.

In his first match of the 2008 season, current Pathways Development Manager Shannon Gallant was one of three players to cross for a double, joining Chris Heighington and Ben Te’o.

Liam Fulton, Dene Halatau and Peni Tagive were among the other try scorers, while Benji Marshall slotted eight conversions and scored a try of his own to end with a personal tally of 20 points.

The win provided the home side with a much needed boost to their points differential and equalled the club’s biggest ever victory, but they would ultimately fall two wins short of a finals berth.