The Wests Tigers have fallen 44-16 to the Melbourne Storm this afternoon in Round 10 of the NRL Telstra Premiership.
Despite a strong effort across the park from the Tigers, a fast start and a 20-point lead was too much to overcome at AAMI Park.
Benji Marshall’s injury-stricken side had a late change, with Terrell May returning to Sydney on the morning of the match to be at the birth of his third child. NRL veteran, Bunty Afoa stepped into the starting side to make his Club debut.
Taylan May had a standout individual performance, scoring two tries and running for 179 metres. May has now recorded a try in each of his last four matches since returning from injury.
Key stats:
Left edge: Taylan May scored two tries and ran for 179 metres, while Luke Laulilii scored a try and ran for 156 metres.
Alex Twal: Recorded 47 tackles and 10 hit-ups.
Club debuts: NRL veteran Bunty Afoa (WT #307) and Mavrik Geyer (WT #308) played their first match in orange, black, and white.
Completion rate: The Tigers had a completion rate of 91%, finishing 31 out of their 34 sets.
The moments:
3rd minute: Sualauvi Faalogo goes over in the left corner, putting the Storm into the lead. The kick is unsuccessful. Tigers trail 4-0.
6th minute: Will Warbrick catches a bomb mid-air and goes over. Nick Meaney is unable to convert. The Storm lead 8-0.
9th minute: A Storm run ends with Cameron Munster going under the posts. The Storm extend their lead to 14-0.
12th minute: The Storm dart down the middle of the field, with Jahrome Hughes scoring under the posts for their fourth try. It is converted, pushing their lead to 20-0.
25th minute: An optimistic offload from Luke Laulilii on the fifth tackle is caught by Taylan May, who breaks through the Storms defence to score on the left edge. Jock Madden is unable to convert. The Storm lead 20-4.
34th minute: From dummy half, Harry Grant dives over. Melbourne heads into half-time leading 26-4.
54th minute: Grant puts the ball up, which is collected by Warbrick on the right wing, crossing for his second try. Meaney converts for a 32-4 lead.
64th minute: The ball is spread across the field by the Tigers, with Heath Mason getting it to Laulilii, who scores the side’s second try on the left wing. Madden converts, narrowing the margin to 32-10.
66th minute: On the fifth tackle, Madden puts up a bomb which is caught and passed into Luai’s hands, who spreads it to May for his second try of the match. Madden converts, bringing the score to 32-16.
71st minute: Munster crosses for his second try of the match. The try is converted, making the score 38-16.
78th minute: Ativalu Lisati crosses the line for the Storm’s final try of the match. Meaney converts, ending the game 44-16.
What they said:
NRL Head Coach, Benji Marshall:
“I was proud of the fight in the second half, but ultimately, we just weren't good enough.”
“Our standards are better than that, but I'm not going to make any excuses. What I've got to try and find are solutions, what's going to help, and how we get out of it.”
“Happy Mother's Day to everyone out there. Tough day for us, but we still appreciate all the women and the mothers in our lives.”
Captain Jarome Luai:
When asked about Taylan May’s performance
“He's a beast. All the boys love playing alongside him. The X Factor he brings, and also his values, the stuff without the ball as well. He's an awesome player, and it's our job to get him the ball in space, but we need more of the ball”
