Dragons blitz Broncos to kick off new season

HE walked out on Brisbane to become St George Illawarra’s $6 million man.

In the NRL’s much hyped season opener last night, new Dragons halfback Ben Hunt immediately showed his worth as he turned Broncos bad boy Matt Lodge’s return into a nightmare.

An unsympathetic Hunt intercepted a loose Lodge pass in the 50th minute to run 45m untouched to score a vital try that propelled the Dragons to a thumping 34-12 win before 14,457 fans at Jubilee Oval.

The crowd broke into a stirring rendition of When the Saints go Marching In right on full-time as Hunt’s arrival ushered in a new era.

Hunt kicked for his side’s first try, scored the second and played a role in the Saints’ third. Celebrating his runaway try, Hunt booted the ball out of the Kogarah ground and into nearby Jubilee Ave.

Lodge’s ill-fated delivery only added to an uncomfortable night, where he was jeered with each carry by the vocal crowd.

Hunt looked comfortable and composed, and controlled the game beautifully. He also kicked for 287m.

A try to Dragons centre Euan Aitken pushed his side out to a lead they weren’t going to surrender. Teammate Jack de Belin bullied his way over eight minutes from fulltime to secure the win before winger Jason Nightingale flew over out wide.

In the end, it was a robust and emphatic win over a highly disappointing Broncos team. Victory must have been hugely rewarding and relieving for Saints coach Paul McGregor. It was the joint venture club’s 50th win at Jubilee Oval.

As is so often the case in Round 1, both sides were untidy and disjointed in the first half.

By halftime Brisbane had completed just eight of 16 sets.

It seemed as though Broncos coach Wayne Bennett was too busy blaming everyone else for the world’s problems rather than coaching his football team in ball control. ST GEORGE ILLAWARRA 34 (Aitken, De Belin, Frizell, Hunt, Nightingale tries, Widdop 7 goals) beat BRISBANE 12 (Roberts 2 tries, Kahu 2 goals) at UOW Jubilee Oval, Kogarah. Crowd: 14,457.