NRL Round-Up: A Bunny's brain fades, the bunker bungles and Brisbane brings out Big Ben (2024)

It started with arguably the game of the season on Thursday night and the drama simply kept coming in round five of the 2024 NRL season.

Here's our round-up:

• Thursday: Reynolds injured as Storm topple Broncos in instant classic
• Friday: Bulldogs sneak home in crazy Roosters win, Knights outfight Dragons
• Saturday: Latrellembodies frustrated Souths, Manly celebrates DCE's record, Dolphins depleted in win over Tigers
• Sunday: Raiders roast sorry Eels, Kyle Feldt grabs history as Cowboys hold off Titans

1. The NRL's new giant is real and he's spectacular

There's been plenty of hype as we waited for Ben Te Kura's NRL debut — after all, any player who weighs in at 122kg and stands 205cm tall isn't exactly going to arrive quietly.

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Thursday night's loss to Melbourne was a bitter one for the Broncos given they lost Adam Reynolds to a hamstring injury but Te Kura's debut is the kind of silver lining that will pay off down the road. In just 24 minutes, Te Kura ran for 115 metres and crashed over for a late try that gave his side a chance at earning a miracle victory.

Some players, as paradoxical as it may seem, can be too big for rugby league. Philadelphia Eagles offensive lineman Jordan Mailata is one such player, Wallabies captain Will Skelton was another. Size isn't enough, you have to be able to move it, both into the defensive line with power and back the ten metres with speed and agility.

Te Kura showed he's far more than just a big unit, he can be the kind of interchange weapon that can transform the Broncos into an even more dangerous attacking side when they get all their stars back. He'll be a threat close to the line, both for tries and quick play-the-balls, because he doesn't just have the bulk, he also knows how to use it.

ABC player of the year votes:

3 — Jahrome Hughes (Storm)

2 — Eliesa Katoa (Storm)

1 — Ezra Mam (Broncos)

2. Staring into rugby league madness

So many things happened in the Bulldogs' win over the Roosters that between the 10 tries, five HIAs, two players returning to the NRL after serving four-year bans for taking performance-enhancing drugs and one send-off, it's difficult to know where to start.

Such was the bizarre nature of the game — the Bulldogs raced out to a 26-0 lead before barely holding on against a fast-finishing Roosters team playing with 11 men — it's hard to know how much to take away from the game. But what's certain is the ripple effects will last for some weeks to come.

Dom Young will face a two-week suspension for his high shot on Blake Taaffe. Sam Walker and James Tedesco failing their HIAs mean they'll be out for Thursday's clash with the Knights — it's the 10th concussion of Tedesco's career, which means every one from here on in is of greater concern.

The Roosters paid the price on the night for their lack of application. Now they'll pay it again a couple more times over.

The Bulldogs won't be without their own psychosis from the match — rarely has such an upset win also felt a bit like a loss and their own injury list is just as extensive. One of the strangest games of the NRL era is going to stick with all of us for a while yet.

ABC player of the year votes:

3 — Matt Burton (Bulldogs)

2 — Viliame Kikau (Bulldogs)

1 — Victor Radley (Roosters)

3. Big men lead the way for resurgent Knights

Kalyn Ponga attracted plenty of plaudits for his strong showing at fullback for the Knights against the Dragons, but in underwater conditions in Newcastle it was the club's big men who got the job done.

Newcastle's forwards haven't been at their best thus far this season but they got back to their form from late last year with the Saifiti twins helping to lead the way alongside Kiwi hardman Leo Thompson.

In such wet conditions, forward dominance is paramount because every backline spread is fraught with peril. The Knights forwards rolled up the sleeves and embraced the tough, gritty and thoroughly unglamorous work that had to be done if the Novocastrians were to secure their second win of the season.

Getting Ponga, Bradman Best and all the others going is important, but if there's no platform, none of the rest of it can happen. For this Knights team to string wins together they need more of the same from the big men up front.

ABC player of the year votes:

3 — Leo Thompson (Knights)

2 — Jacob Saifiti (Knights)

1 — Enari Tuala (Knights)

4. New lows for the Rabbitohs

The South Sydney Rabbitohs were one try shy of winning the premiership in 2021, but less than three years later they look a shell of that team.

Starting the season with three straight losses, including a 48-6 embarrassment by century-old rivals the Roosters, Souths got one on the board against the Bulldogs last week.

But round five saw them thud into the ground with a 34-4 thumping from the Warriors. And the scoreline wasn't even the worst part.

The bad news started before the opening whistle when Lachlan Ilias, who is trying to work his way back to the cardinal and myrtle number seven jersey, badly broke his leg on the final play of the Rabbitohs' NSW Cup curtain raiser.

Less than one half of NRL football later and fullback Latrell Mitchell was in the referee's book twice for a pair of plays that even his coach called "stupid".

Already looking aimless and disjointed in attack, the loss of their biggest star is unlikely to help, but Maroons coach Billy Slater suggested Mitchell's suspension could help him and the team "reset their season".

They already tried that once by dropping Ilias after the second round and it preceded a 42-point thrashing, so what rein they pull now and whether it has any effect will be a storyline over the coming months.

ABC player of the year votes:

3 — Shaun Johnson (Warriors)

2 — Wayde Egan (Warriors)

1 — Tohu Harris (Warriors)

5. The bunker blind to blatant bungle

You have to play to the whistle, but you can forgive the Penrith Panthers for not giving full chase when Tolutau Koula broke free and went 90 metres to score for Manly on Saturday afternoon.

It appeared for all money like Tommy Talau had knocked on in the lead-up as he tried to intercept Dylan Edwards's pass.

Referee Todd Smith could be heard asking the touch judge "knocked back?" before allowing Koula to play on.

Now, there is a chance the ball did not move towards the opponents' tryline off Talau's hands. A slim chance, but a chance.

And regardless, you'd be hard-pressed to find many instances of a ball being knocked down and landing in front of a player's feet not being called a knock-on, even if they did technically drag it back towards them somewhat.

ABC player of the year votes:

3 — Taniela Paseka (Sea Eagles)

2 — Nathan Brown (Sea Eagles)

1 — Daly Cherry-Evans (Sea Eagles)

6. Dolphins decimated ahead ofBattle of Brisbane

Friday's game between the Broncos and Dolphins at Lang Park is set to be one of the biggest of the opening two months of the season, but it will be without plenty of the expected star power.

Adam Reynolds and Deine Mariner had already joined Payne Haas, Reece Walsh, Brendan Piakura and Xavier Willison on Brisbane's lengthy injured list, and a host of Dolphins joined them in the win over the Tigers on Saturday.

Former Broncos Herbie Farnworth and Tom Flegler left the game early with shoulder injuries, and Felise Kaufusi and Euan Aitken were both nursing hamstring strains in the aftermath.

The game will still have one of the biggest crowds so far this year, but it's certainly lost some of the polish we'd expect from this budding rivalry.

ABC player of the year votes:

3 — Isaiya Katoa (Dolphins)

2 — Stefano Utoikamanu (Tigers)

1 — Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow (Dolphins)

7. That Feldt good

Matt Bowen is a North Queensland Cowboys legend no matter which way you slice it, but the iconic fullback is no longer the club's leading try-scorer.

After Sunday's 35-22 win over the Gold Coast, veteran winger Kyle Feldt now stands alone with 131, including the most famous try in Cowboys history.

And, true to form, his record-breaker was another clutch effort, swooping on an intercept to sink the Titans just as they were threatening to pull off a miracle comeback.

It was just reward for a faithful servant who was in and out of the side last season, but kept working at his craft.

ABC player of the year votes:

3 — Reece Robson (Cowboys)

2 — Scott Drinkwater (Cowboys)

1 — Reuben Cotter (Cowboys)

8. Jordan Rapana makes a statement

Jordan Rapana looked as done as a rugby league player can be in the third minute of Canberra's Sunday evening clash with Parramatta, when a trainer was unable to pop his right knee back into place on the field.

The Raiders fullback hopped off with a hideous-looking joint and we all resigned ourselves to watching a rejigged backline try to make do for the rest of the night. Then, midway through the half, Rapana emerged on the sidelines; still in his jersey, with a heavily strapped knee.

He couldn't, could he?

Sure enough, after half-time, the fan favourite took the field with his teammates and lined up at the back. But his first action of the half looked like another night-ender, when he hit the ground hard after catching a bomb and popped his knee back out.

But once again, he hopped around for a bit, waited for the medical staff to get his knee back in joint, and got on with the game.

He finished with over 100 running metres (more than half of them after contact), a line break and two tackle breaks in just over 40 minutes in the 41-8 win.

"After last week's s*** we dished out, we owed it to our fans and ourselves to put a bit of pride back in our jerseys and show that was a one-off s*** game," he told ABC Sport.

You certainly did that, Jordan.

ABC player of the year votes:

3 — Morgan Smithies (Raiders)

2 — Matt Timoko (Raiders)

1 — Joseph Tapine (Raiders)

ABC player of the year top 10

1. Dylan Edwards (Panthers) - 7

=2. Jahrome Hughes (Storm) - 6

=2. Ben Hunt (Dragons) - 6

=2.James Tedesco (Roosters) - 6

=2. Matt Timoko (Raiders) - 6

=6.Haumole Olakau'atu (Sea Eagles) - 5

=6.Api Koroisau (Tigers) - 5

=6.Pat Carrigan (Broncos) - 5

=6.Scott Drinkwater (Cowboys) - 5

=6.Reece Robson (Cowboys) - 5

(Votes are compiled by the ABC Grandstand commentary team after each match)