Throwback Thursday: vs St George Illawarra Dragons

Wests Tigers have won 20 of the 41 matches between the two sides dating back to 2000, but have emerged victorious in four of the last five encounters.

The two joint-ventures have have only met once at CommBank Stadium, with James Roberts scoring a double last season to secure a 16-point victory for his team.

Ahead of Sunday’s match, we’re going back to take a look at two of the most memorable matches between Wests Tigers and the St. George Illawarra Dragons.

2012

Sitting in eighth position with four rounds to play, Wests Tigers needed to secure a victory over the desperate Dragons to keep their season alive in 2012.

Brett Morris got the visitors away to the perfect start with a chip-and-chase try in the 10th minute before Mitch Rein made the most of the wet conditions to scoot over from dummy-half.

The Dragons looked to have completely defused the potent Wests Tigers attack in the first half, but Tim Moltzen cut the deficit in the final minutes by barging past two defenders on his way to the line.

After the break, Benji Marshall created a try for Liam Fulton with an inside pass before Robbie Farah kicked through the defensive line to find Tim Moltzen for the fullback’s second four-pointer.

A try to Brett Morris in the 64th minute provided the match with a grandstand finish, but a piece of Marshall magic would prove decisive and seal the final result.

Marshall produced a no-look pass that completely fooled the St. George Illawarra defensive line, giving Tim Moltzen the opportunity to complete his hat-trick and keep his side’s finals hopes alive.

2021

After a tough start to the 2021 season, Wests Tigers travelled south to Wollongong in search of their second victory of the year.

An early penalty goal put the home side in front, before Cody Ramsay touched down in the left corner to extend the lead to six points.

Wests Tigers soon hit back through Tommy Talau, after a Luke Brooks crossfield kick was tapped back by David Nofoaluma.

Winger Zac Cini made a strong start to his first grade debut with a try saving tackle on Billy Burns, but the visitors couldn’t prevent Corey Norman from kicking his side back into the lead.

Cini looked to have scored the first try of his NRL career directly in front of his family and friends in the Southern Grandstand, but he was cruelly denied by the Bunker.

Luckily, Cini would receive another chance minutes later as Adam Doueihi and Daine Laurie combined to send the winger over the line.

Leading by two points, Joey Leilua capitalised on a dominant period of play to push the visitors’ advantage out to eight points with a damaging run to the line.

Wests Tigers would then hold on to secure their third consecutive victory against the Dragons and maintain their perfect record in Wollongong.