It was another successful weekend for Wests Tigers in Round 5 with a number of impressive victories and performances across the different grades.
Highlighted by Ivan Cleary's side continuing their remarkable start to the year with a second upset win over the Melbourne Storm, the club's Intrust Super Premiership and Tarsha Gale sides also chalked up big victories, while there was also strong efforts throughout the junior grades.
Round 6 will see Wests Tigers take on the Sea Eagles at Lottoland in NRL and North Sydney in ISP, while the first round of finals will begin for the Tarsha Gale and junior representative teams.
NRL
Wests Tigers 11 def. Melbourne Storm 10 at Mount Smart Stadium
Having already trounced the Storm once this season, Wests Tigers made it two wins in a year over Melbourne for the first time in club history with a gutsy 11-10 victory at Mount Smart Stadium as part of the NRL doubleheader on the day. Trailing mid-way through the second half, Luke Brooks and Chris Lawrence dragged the home side back in to the match with some stirring individual performances on the left edge before a late field goal from Benji Marshall gave Wests Tigers the two points on the day.
2018 Match Highlights: Rd.5, Wests Tigers vs. Storm
ISP
Western Suburbs Magpies 32 def. New Zealand Warriors 0 at Campbelltown Sports Stadium
Western Suburbs continued their brilliant start to the season with a comprehensive win over the Warriors with a 32-point drubbing at Campbelltown Sports Stadium. Josh Drinkwater was the star with a hand in all five tries, while also adding six goals in the win that saw the hosts remain on top of the Intrust Super Premiership ladder after five rounds — with both the best attack and defence in the competition.
Magpies continue winning ways over Warriors
JERSEY FLEGG
New Zealand Warriors 26 def. Wests Tigers 10 at Campbelltown Sports Stadium
It was a tough afternoon for the club's Jersey Flegg side on Saturday, who still remain winless through five weeks of the competition with a 16-point defeat to the New Zealand Warriors. Despite both sides coming in to the match without a win, it was all the Warriors through the opening 65 minutes of the match — leading 26-0 — before two late tries to Lucas Castle and Connelly Lemuelu added some respectability to the scoreboard for Craig Wilson's side, albeit too late to change the final result on Saturday afternoon.
TARSHA GALE
Wests Tigers 62 def. South Sydney Rabbitohs 4 at Leichhardt Oval
Wests Tigers capped off their brilliant regular season in the Tarsha Gale competition with a huge win over the Rabbitohs — ending the year in third spot on the ladder, narrowly behind the second-placed Illawarra Steelers on for-and-against. Emily Curtain scored 26 points alone in the win (three tries, seven goals) to end the season as the third highest try-scorer with 17 tries with a finals match TBC next weekend.
JUNIOR REPS
Harold Matthews — Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles 34 def. Western Suburbs Magpies 10
Harold Matthews — Balmain Tigers 54 def. South Sydney Rabbitohs 12
SG Ball — Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles 64 def. Western Suburbs Magpies 0
SG Ball — South Sydney Rabbitohs 16 def. Balmain Tigers 6
The results in the final week of the two junior representative competitions means that Balmain finish the Harold Matthews season in 7th while the Magpies narrowly miss out on the finals, finishing in 9th. Both Balmain and Wests will miss the finals of the SG Ball season after finishing 14th and 15th respectively.
