The Bulldogs have gone down in a gutsy 29-22 grand final match against the Penrith Panthers in The Knock-On Effect NSW Cup.
Despite displaying some serious strength and resilience on the field, the Bulldogs team fell just short, leaving the Panthers Club to claim a trifecta after having also claimed the SG Ball Cup earlier in the year and the Jersey Flegg Cup earlier that same day.
“A few months ago, we didn’t even have a reserve grade side.” Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs Chair, John Khoury explained.
“We were going to outsource but in the 11th hour we put in a submission to bring back our reserve grade side 12 months earlier than planned.
“No one gave us a chance that we would be competitive, but we made it to the grand final and we nearly won that game,” he said of Sunday’s grand final efforts.
“We were competitive,” he said beaming with pride despite the loss.
The result speaks volumes about the future of the Club and the only thing to outshine the team’s never-say-die efforts were the fans.
“I want to call out to our members and fans. There were over 6000 people here today and I think at least 5000 of them were Bulldogs supporters,” Khoury said.
“They make us proud, always.”
The match was a true nail-biter with the lead changing three times in the opening half.
The Penrith Panthers opened the scoring inside the seventh minute when Sean O’Sullivan put up a floater over the top for Sunia Turuva. Turuva crossed the Bulldog’s defensive line to score on the left wing and an unsuccessful conversion set the score at 4-0.
Bulldog’s captain and halfback Brandon Wakeham was quick to level the playing field, popping up a bomb in the 13th minute to find an elevated Jayden Okunbur and even the score. Wakeham added the extras to see the Bulldogs up by two.
The match quickly turned into a tit-for-tat try-grab affair with Penrith’s Soni Luke popping in a grubber for Kurt Falls to nab another try for the Panthers. This time converting his own try to see them regain the lead.
A loose pass saw Penrith centre Jack Cole capitalise with a 60-metre runaway try and O’Sullivan popped in a field goal at the hooter to give the Panthers the lead at halftime, 17-6.
Despite the slight blowout just ahead of halftime, the Dogs’ fight wasn’t through. Valiantly returning to the field, the Cup side showed the true colours of the club when they clawed their way back into contention throughout the second half.
A penalty from obstruction held out an early southeast corner second-half try for the Penrith side. Instead, it was young gun Declan Casey who would find the try-line first, picking up five-eight Khaled Rajabs’ kick to score and narrow the gap, 17-12.
Back-to-back penalties saw the momentum continue to shift and the Bulldogs club continue to fight their way back into contention. Okunbur grabbed a double and despite a tough kick miss for Wakeham, the Belmore boys were breathing down the Panthers’ necks 17-16.
But with Penrith fighting to equal a four-decade record and claim the win to accompany the Flegg and SG Ball Cups, they weren’t to be dismissed.
Crashing through the Bulldogs’ defensive line, Soni Luke answered with another try for the opposition stretching the score line 23-16 after a successful conversion.
Proving their strength and resilience, it wasn’t long before fan favourite, second rower Jackson Topine took a thrilling run to ward off five defenders and score the Dogs’ fourth try of the match, bringing the score-line back to a nail-biter, 23-22 as Wakeham added the extras. The momentum was to be short-lived though.
The Bulldogs couldn’t hold out the likes of Turuva who crossed the line just a few tackles after a barging run downfield. A successful conversion stretched the lead 29-22.
One last crack saw Bulldog’s fans hold their breath as the video referee reviewed a potential Topine double with a mere two minutes to go, but it was ruled a no-try and the hooter sounded to a Penrith victory.
The Bulldogs had entered the big dance in scintillating form after winning a three-match streak in the elimination finals, but that proved to be their limit as they were outplayed by the season’s best side.
“One thing that I loved was that you never gave up,” Coach David Tangata-Toa (“Tangles”) said to his team at the conclusion of the game.
“We were supposed to be knocked out, but you kept turning up for each other and having some real pride in the jersey you wear.
“I’m super proud, and you should be super proud of yourselves and how much pride you showed in the jersey.
“You just kept proving them wrong and working hard for each other.”
Penrith Panthers 29 (Tries: Sunia Turuva 2, Kurt Falls, Soni Luke; Goals: Kurt Falls 4; Field Goals: Sean O’Sullivan 1)
def. Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 22 (Tries: Jayden Okunbor 2, Declan Casey, Jackson Topine; Goals: Brandon Wakeham 3)
