Suspension likely to mar Storm win
Melbourne Storm star Will Chambers could be facing a lengthy suspension after throwing a punch at Sam Kasiano from behind in a fiery 12- 6 win over Canterbury in their NRL season opener.
Both players were sin- binned for letting fly late in last night’s first half at Belmore Sportsground. However, replays showed Chambers came from a distance to hit an unsuspecting Kasiano.
But in what might be a bigger blow for last year’s grand finalists, Storm prop Jesse Bromwich is suspected of having dislocated his thumb in the opening stages of the match.
The Chambers- Kasiano incident began when the Bulldogs prop held on to the jersey of Cooper Cronk, which turned into a minor scuffle before Chambers joined in.
Kasiano was also seen to throw them back at the Storm centre in retaliation.
The fight sparked a spiteful game in driving rain that included Storm fullback Cameron Munster likely to become the first player fined after being put on report for tripping.
It marred a thrilling contest that wasn’t decided until the final siren, with the torrential conditions in the second half preventing either side changing the 12- 6 halftime score.
Tries in the opening six minutes to Cheyse Blair and Suliasi Vunivalu left the Bulldogs faithful stunned, and it would’ve been three if Munster had held on to a Ryley Jacks kick.
However, the injury to Bromwich and a concussion test for Dale Finucane, combined with the introduction of Kasiano off the bench, quickly swung momentum the way of the Bulldogs. But despite dominating possession, a 29th- minute try to Josh Reynolds off a Brenko Lee break was all the points the Bulldogs had to show before halftime.
With a 30- 17 advantage in tackles inside the opposition quarter, Canterbury will be left to rue a number of missed opportunities to score points in good ball position.
The fixture was also the first in the controversial 6pm Friday night timeslot, with a crowd of 8712 braving the torrid conditions.
The Wests Tigers beat South Sydney 34- 18 in last night’s late NRL game. The Rabbitohs scored the opening try at ANZ Stadium after just five minutes but the Tigers notched three in 11 minutes to take an 18- 4 lead. Greg Inglis reduced the deficit just before the break but Souths had no answer in the third quarter, as the Tigers scored another three tries for a match- winning 34- 8 lead. Bryson Goodwin scored t wo late tries to complete his hat- trick.