Second half points surge puts the Jets back in the winner’s circle

The Newtown Jets broke a three-match losing streak in defeating St George-Illawarra 26-10, in the ninth round NSW Cup fixture played at Henson Park on Saturday.

The heavy rain repeatedly predicted for Saturday did not eventuate in inner-western Sydney, but the expectations of a downpour at Henson Park drastically reduced the attendance.

The first half was a hard fought, gruelling forty minutes, with the Dragons scoring the first points in the 36th minute. In the last minute of the first half, quick hands from the midweek signing from Canterbury Bulldogs, Khaled Rajab, and Niwhai Puru sent Sam Stonestreet over to score in the south-western corner, with the Dragons taking a 6-4 lead into the half-time break.

This match remained a tight contest right up to the one hour mark, when a four-try burst of scoring in the space of just 13 minutes broke the match wide open for the Jets. 

Joshua Cook scored in the sixtieth minute after backing up excellent lead-up work by Billy Burns and the newly-signed five-eighth Khaled Rajab.

Four minutes after Cook’s try, Mawene Hiroti ran in to score virtually unopposed after the Dragons had been unable to defuse a well-placed high kick into the corner by Niwhai Puru.

The Jets were on the rampage again, this time in the 68th minute, when Blake Hosking laid on a perfectly-directed pass to the fast-supporting Kyle Pickering, who celebrated his return to the playing ranks by scoring just to the right of the posts.

The Newtown boys made it try number five for the match seven minutes before full-time, this time with the ball being quickly transferred between Niwhai Puru, Khaled Rajab and Jackson Ferris, ending in Sam Stonestreet showing clever evasive skills to crash over in the north-eastern corner.

Other news sources reported that Khaled Rajab had turned on a strong defensive performance as well as delivering several quality passes. Josh Cook’s try midway through the second half was credited with opening the way for the Jets to run in several more tries, for what ultimately was an emphatic victory.

The Jets travel west on Sunday, 12th May to play the Blacktown Workers Sea Eagles. This round ten NSW Cup fixture is to be played at the HE Laybutt Field (Blacktown) and is timed for kick-off at 3.00pm. The Jets will be keen to avenge their narrow loss to the Sea Eagles at Henson Park three weeks ago.

Match Details:
NSWRL Knock-On Effect NSW cup
Round Nine
Saturday, 4th May 2024
Henson Park
Newtown v St George-Illawarra
Kick-Off: 3.00pm.

Referee: Damian Brady
Touch Judges: Mitchell Stone, Nick Beashel.

Weather: 18 degrees, overcast, rain was predicted but didn’t fall during the match.

Playing surface: Excellent

Match result, 4th May 2024: –
Newtown 26:
Sam Stonestreet 2, Joshua Cook,
Mawene Hiroti, Kyle Pickering tries;
Mawene Hiroti 3 conversions
defeated
St George-Illawarra 10:
Savelio Tamale, Mathew Feagai tries;
Jesse Marschke 1 conversion.Half-Time: St George-Illawarra led 6-4.

Newtown’s team was:
Fullback: Kade Dykes
Wingers: Tom Rodwell, Sam Stonestreet
Centres: Mawene Hiroti, Jackson Ferris
Halves: Khaled Rajab, Niwhai Puru
Lock: Billy Magoulias
Second-Rowers: Kyle Pickering, Billy Burns
Front-Rowers: Royce Hunt, Tuku Hau Tapuha
Hooker: Sam Healey
Interchange: Josh Cook, Rhys Dakin, Jordin Leiu, Blake Hosking
Reserve: Jordan Swann
Coach: George Ndaira

St George-Illawarra:
Fullback: Jesse Marschke
Wingers: Sione Finau, Savelio Tamale
Centres: Max Feagai, Matt Feagai
Halves: Josh Ralph, Jonah Glover
Lock: Toby Couchman
Second-Rowers: Dylan Egan, Daniel Russell
Front-Rowers: Alex Tuitavake, Viliami Fifita
Hooker: Connor Muhleisen
Interchange: Haele Finau, Ryan Couchman, Josh Coric, Jackson Shereb
Reserve: Ben Johnson
Coach: Ben Woolf

NSW Cup Highlights – Newtown Jets v St George-Illawarra Dragons – Round Nine
https://www.nswrl.com.au/news/2024/05/04/nsw-cup-highlights–jets-v-dragons—round-nine/

The NSWRL Knock-On Effect NSW Cup competition table after nine rounds:
https://www.nswrl.com.au/ladder/?competition=113&round=9&season=2024Post-match interview with the new Newtown Jets signing, five-eighth Khaled Rajab (ex-Canterbury Bulldogs):
https://twitter.com/newtownrlfc/status/1787025498658504786

Match Timeline, 4th May 2024:
Kick-off was at 3.00pm
First half:
St George kicked off, running to the northern end of the ground.
The kick-off went out on the full!
36th minute: Savelio Tamale try.
Converted by Jesse Marschke. Dragons 6-0.
39th minute: Sam Stonestreet try
Not converted. Dragons 6-4.
Half-Time: St George-Illawarra led 6-4.
Second half:
60th minute: Joshua Cook try
Converted by Mawene Hiroti. Newtown 10-6.
64th minute: Mawene Hiroti try
Converted by Mawene Hiroti. Newtown 16-6.
68th minute: Kyle Pickering try.
Converted by Mawene Hiroti. Newtown 22-6.
73rd minute: Sam Stonestreet try.
Not converted. Newtown 26-6.
79th minute: Matt Feagai try.
Not converted. Newtown 26-10.
Full-Time: Newtown 26 defeated St George-Illawarra 10.

Match Statistics, 4th May 2024: –

Possession: Newtown 54%, Dragons 46%
Time in possession: Newtown 28.45, Dragons 23.45
Completions: Newtown 82%, Dragons 75%
Number of runs: Newtown 195, Dragons 151
Run metres: Newtown 1964, Dragons 1665
Post contact: Newtown 744, Dragons 741
Line breaks: Newtown 5, Dragons 2
Tackle breaks: Newtown 23, Dragons 38
Average set distance: Newtown 50.4, Dragons 50.5
Kick return metres: Newtown 128, Dragons 140
Average play the ball speed: Newtown 3.3 seconds, Dragons 3.4 seconds
Passing offloads: Newtown 13, Dragons 10
Total passes: Newtown 229, Dragons 203
Dummy passes: Newtown 4, Dragons 8
Kicks: Newtown 20, Dragons 18
Kick metres: Newtown 567, Dragons 489
Forced drop-outs: Newtown 2, Dragons 1
Kick defusals: Newtown 71%, Dragons 67%
Bombs: Newtown 3, Dragons 7
Grubbers: Newtown 2, Dragons 3
Effective tackles: Newtown 86%, Dragons 88%
Tackles made: Newtown 317, Dragons 364
Missed tackles: Newtown 38, Dragons 23
Intercepts: Newtown 0, Dragons 1
Ineffective tackles: Newtown 15, Dragons 27
Errors: Newtown 8, Dragons 10
Penalties conceded: Newtown 7, Dragons 8.
(Statistics provided by the NSWRL).

Newtown’s next game:
NSWRL Knock-On Effect NSW Cup
Round Ten
Sunday, 12th May 2024
H E Laybutt Field, Blacktown
Blacktown Workers Sea Eagles v Newtown
Kick-Off: 3.00pm.     NSWRL TV (coverage by subscription).