The Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs have suffered a 12-point loss in Townsville to the North Queensland Cowboys.
Down 12 men after Jack Hetherington was sent from the field for a 55th-minute swinging arm on Valentine Holmes with the Cowboys fullback, the Bulldogs rallied and scored two tries to trail the hosts 24-18 with ten minutes left in the match.
Canterbury had their chances in the closing stages despite being down one player, but the Cowboys through Mitch Dunn grabbed their fifth try for the match in the 78th minute to close out a 30-18 victory.
Despite the loss, bulldogs.com.au takes a look at three key points to take away from the match.
Watene-Zeleznaik stars at the back:
Fullback Dallin Watene-Zelezniak was superb at the back in the number one jersey. The Kiwi International had 26 carries and ran for 234 metres. With seven tackle breaks and 84 post contact metres, Watene-Zelezniak ran with venom and looked threatening every time he ran the ball. His impressive performance backs up his outstanding game last weekend against Melbourne Storm.
Katoa grabs first NRL try:
Winger Tui Katoa in his 5th NRL game crossed for his first four-pointer of his NRL career. His try came in the 69th minute when a long ball from Kyle Flanagan found centre Corey Allan who tipped on to put his winger away. The local junior made his debut in round 20 of the 2020 season and today’s clash with the Cowboys was he fourth appearance of the season. Along with his first try, Katoa ran for 99 metres from 10 carries.
Flanagan scores his first try in Bulldogs colours:
In his sixth game for the club, halfback Kyle Flanagan grabbed his first try in the Bulldogs number seven jersey when he pounced on a Sione Katoa grubber kick from dummy half to score next to posts.
Thompson delivers impressive numbers:
In his second of 2021, Englishman Luke Thompson was great in the middle during his 57 minutes. Thompson ran for 148 metres from 16 carries and along with 37 tackles, he led from the front for the Bulldogs. With 54 post-contact metres and four tackle breaks, the prop forward will continue to get better as the season rolls on. His great numbers today follow last’s week superb performance in his first outing for 2021.
The Bulldogs head to Kogarah Jubilee Oval in round seven to do battle with the Cronulla Sharks.
Match Highlights: Round 6 v Cowboys
