Moon of Liberty Rugby League – NRL Round 24

Rugby League – NRL

Round 24 Round-Up

Melbourne Storm reinforced their position at the top with a huge 44-12 thrashing of Newcastle. A Brodie Croft hat-trick was part of the eight try demolition that demonstrates why they are the best side at the moment. It’s tight in behind with five teams within four points. Second place Brisbane won again beating ST George 24-12 with Alex Glenn grabbing two of the Broncos 5 tries. Sydney City also have 34 points in third, with Latrell Mitchell scoring the crucial winning try with eight minutes left in a 22-18 win over Western Suburbs.

Just behind on 32 points are Cronulla and Parramatta who both won this week as well. Paramatta beat Gold Coast 30-8 with a perfect 5 for 5 kicking performance from Mitch Moses in which he controlled the game as the Eels ran in five tries. Meanwhile Cronulla took advantage of an injury hit North Queensland to run in four tries in a 26-16 win.

Penrith helped their play off hopes with a tightly fought 26-22 win at Canberra with aided by 12 points and a try from Nathan Cleary. Canterbury who are already eliminated struck a blow to Manly’s play off hopes with a 30-16 win set up by two early tries from Marcelo Montoya.

Finally an Alex Johnson hat-trick helped South Sydney win 36-18 against the New Zealand Warriors, whose dismal recent form continues. It is their fifth defeat in a row.

More NRL – NRL.com or Fox Australia

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MOON OF LIBERTY SCOREBOARD

NRL – Round 24 Results

Parramatta Eeels 30 – Gold Coast Titans 8

South Sydney Rabbitohs 36 – New Zealand Warriors 18

Brisbane Broncos 24 – ST George Dragons 12

Newcastle Knights 12 – Melbourne Storm 44

Sydney City Roosters 22 – Western Suburbs Tigers 18

North Queensland Cowboys 16 – Cronulla Sharks 26

Canberra Raiders 22 – Penrith Panthers 26

Canterbury Bulldogs 30 – Manly Sea Eagles 16

MOON OF LIBERTY STAR MAN – Brodie Croft (Melbourne Storm)

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Moon of Liberty Rugby League – Super League & NRL Round-Up

Rugby League

Super League Super 8’s Round 1

Runaway leaders the Castleford Tigers suffered a shock home defeat as the Super 8’s kicked off. Two tires from James Roby and 10 points off the boot of Mark Percival ensured ST Helens got the shock 26-12 win at the Jungle. Nearest rivals Leeds closed the gap to eight points with an impressive win over Challenge Cup finalists Wigan. A Hat trick from Stevie Ward helped Leeds as they ran in six tries to run out 32-16 as they ran away with it after a tight first half.

Hull are in third place after a 32-16 win against Salford. It was all square at the break but Hull eased ahead in an impressive second half with Jake Connor kicking a perfect six out of six. 16 points and a try for Danny Brough was key for Huddersfield as they thrashed Wakefield 36-6 in the remaining game of the weekend.

For More Super League results, stats and match reports (Rugby-League.com)

NRL Round 22

Leaders the Melbourne Storm march on taking advantage of injury hit North Queensland to move 6 points clear at the top. Two tries from Suliasi Vunivalu were part of a five try victory ending 26-8. Cronulla lost ground with huge loss at Canberra who are back in the play off hunt. Two tries for Jordan Rapana and 14 points for Jarrod Crocker saw the Green Machine to an impressive and deserved 30-12 win.

Sydney City also lost ground  suffering a shock 36-18 defeat at Manly. Two tries for Tom Trbojevic and 14 points and a try from Matthew Wright were the catalyst for the Sea Eagles despite going behind early on. The big winners of the weekend were Brisbane who took advantage of Cronulla and Sydndey City’s slip ups thrashing Gold Coast 54-0. Ben Hunt had an outstanding game gabbing a hat-trick as part of the 10 try demolition. They move ominously into third place.

Elsewhere despite being down to 14 men at the end South Sydney left it late to beat ST George 26-24 with a try from Bryson Goodwin two minutes from time. Parramatta continued their good form with a comfortable win over Canterbury 20-4. Kiwi international Dallin Watene-Zelezniak went over twice as Penrith beat Western Suburbs 28-14. Finally Newcastle remain bottom but have two wins on the bounce defeating the New Zealand Warriors 26-10.

For more NRL nrl.com or Fox Sports Australia

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MOON OF LIBERTY SCOREBOARD

Rugby League Results

Super League Super 8’s Round 1

Castleford Tigers 12 – ST Helens 28

Leeds Rhinos 32 – Wigan Warriors 16

Hull FC 32 – Salford Red Devils 18

Huddersfield Giants 36 – Wakefield Wildcats 6

MOON OF LIBERTY STAR MAN – Stevie Ward (Leeds Rhinos)

NRL Round 22

Canterbury Bulldogs 4 – Parramatta Eels 20

ST George Dragons 24 – South Sydney Rabbitohs 26

North Queensland Cowboys 8 – Melbourne Storm 26

Newcastle Knights 26 – New Zealand Warriors 10

Gold Coast Titans 0 – Brisbane Broncos 54

Cronulla Sharks 12 – Canberra Raiders 30

Manly Sea Eagles 36 – Sydney City Roosters 18

Penrith Panthers 28 – Western Suburbs Tigers 14

MOON OF LIBERTY STAR MAN – Ben Hunt (Brisbane Broncos)

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Moon Of Liberty Rugby League – NRL Round 21

Rugby League

NRL – Round 21

The top 3 all won to sustain their respective challenges for the minor Premiership. Cameron Smith in his 350th game kicked 10 points as top of the table Melbourne thrashed Manly 40-6 in a seven try demolition. Luke Keary got the decisive score for second placed Sydney City in a tightly fought 22-16 win over North Queensland. Cronulla comfortably held onto third with a solid 26-12 win in New Zealand. Brisbane lost ground as they ran into in form Parramatta, two tries from Kirisome Auva’a aided the Eels to an impressive 28-14 win, their fifth in a row.

Elsewhere James Tedesso ran the show for Western Suburbs who were also excellent in defense as they beat Gold Coast 26-4. Canberra eased past South Sydney 32-18 and bottom side Newcastle got a rare win over ST George 21-14.

Results, Stats & Match Reports at NRL.com or Fox Sports Australia

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MOON OF LIBERTY SCOREBOARD

RUGBY LEAGUE RESULTS

NRL Round 21 Results

New Zealand Warriors 12 – Cronulla Sharks 26

Parramatta Eels 28 – Brisbane Broncos 14

Newcastle Knights 21 – ST George Dragons 14

South Sydney Rabbitohs 18 – Canberra Raiders 32

Sydney City Roosters 22 – North Queensland Cowboys 16

Melbourne Storm 40 – Manly Sea Eagles 6

Gold Coast Titans 4 – Western Suburbs Tigers 26

MOON OF LIBERTY STAR MAN – James Tedesso (Western Suburbs Tigers)

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Moon Of Liberty Rugby League – Super League Round 3 & NRL Round 1

Rugby League

Super League Round 3

Super League Round Up

Castleford Tigers shot to the top of Super League with a 12 try demolition of Leeds. Greg Eden and Greg Minkin both got hat tricks as the Tigers ran out 66-10 winners. After a mixed start Hull hit their stride running up a 48-8 win at Huddersfield. Marc Sneyd controlled the game as he got a hat trick of tries and scored a total of 28 points. Mason Caton-Brown got both of Wakefield’s tries as they scored their first win of the season in a 16-12 upset at Langtree Park against ST Helens.

Rock solid defense was the foundation for Champions Wigan. Anthony Gelling went over twice in a 20-0 shut out of Leigh. Salford came from behind to heap more misery on Warrington. The Wolves last years Grand Finalists sit at the bottom of the table as Junior Sa’u got two of four tries for Salford in their 24-14 win. Finally it was all square in Perpingnon as Catalan and Widnes drew 14-14. Rhys Hanbury’s late score capped Widnes comeback from 14-0 down.

Scores and match report links (Rugby-League.com)

NRL Round 1

NRL Round Up

The NRL kicked off with Champions Cronulla going down to defeat against Brisbane. Jordan Kahu got a try and 12 points in the Broncos 26-18 win. Two tries n the firs six minutes from Cheyes Blair and Suniasi Vunivalu was enough for Melbourne despite not scoring again in the rest of the game to take a 12-6 win over Canterbury in the rain. Mitchell Moses was the general for Western Suburbs with a try and 14 points as the Tigers won a comfortable 34-18 victory over South Sydney. Joel Thompson got a hat trick and Gareth Widdop got two tries and a total of 22 points as St George/Illawarra thrashed Penrith scoring seven tries.

North Queensland scored a surprise 20-16 win in golden point overtime with Gavin Cooper getting the winning score. Latrell Mitchell got a hat trick for Sydney City as they eased past Gold Coast 32-18. The New Zealand Warriors got off to a winning start beating last years bottom side Newcastle in a tight game by 26-22. David Fusitu’a got a first half hat trick for the Warriors but two tries from Nathan Ross brought Newcastle level. The winning score seven minutes from time came from Ryan Hoffman. The round ended with Parramatta beating Manly 20-12. Clint Gutherson scored one of the Eels three tries and collected a total of 12 points.

Scores and match report links (NRL.com)

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MOON OF LIBERTY SCOREBOARD

Rugby League Results

Super League Round 3

Huddersfield Giants 8 – Hull 48 – At The John Smiths Stadium, Huddersfield

Castleford Tigers 66 – Leeds Rhinos 10 – At The Jungle, Castleford

ST Helens 12 – Wakefield Trinity Wildcats 16 – At Langtree Park, ST Helens

Wigan Warriors 20 – Leigh Centurions 0 – At The DW Stadium, Wigan

Catalan Dragons 14 – Widnes Vikings 14 – At The Stade Gilbert Brutus, Perpignan, France

Salford Red Devils 24 – Warrington Wolves 14 – At AJ Bell Stadium, Salford

MOON OF LIBERTY STAR MAN – Marc Sneyd (Hull)

NRL Round 1

Cronulla Sharks 18 – Brisbane Broncos 26 – Southern Cross Group Stadium, Woolooware, New South Wales

Canterbury Bulldogs 6 – Melbourne Storm 12 – Belmore Sports Ground, Belmore, New South Wales

South Sydney Rabbitohs 18 – Western Suburb Tigers 34 – ANZ Stadium, Sydney, New South Wales

ST George/Illawarra Dragons 42 – Penrith Panthers 10 – WIN Jubilee Oval, Sydney, New South Wales

North Queensland Cowboys 20 – Canberra Raiders 16 – 13000 Smiles Stadium, Townsville, Queensland

Gold Coast Titans 18 – Sydney City Roosters 32 – Cbus Super Stadium, Gold Coast, Queensland

New Zealand Warriors 26 – Newcastle Knights 22 – At The Mount Smart Stadium, Penrose, Auckland

Manly Sea Eagles 12 – Parramatta Eels 20 – Brookvale Oval, Brookvale, New South Wales

MOON OF LIBERTY STAR MAN – Joel Thompson (ST George/Illawarra Dragons)

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Rugby League Super League – World Club Challenge

Rugby League

World Club Challenge – Wigan v Cronulla

Wigan Champions of the World

Wigan Warriors are the Champions of the Rugby League World after defeating NRL Champions Cronulla in the World Club Championship match. Joe Burgess got the first try within three minutes and added a second half way through the first half. Some excellent defense helped the shut out Cronulla in the first half to take a 10-0 lead into half time. It was fitting the Oliver Gildart, whose father was in the Wigan team that won this trophy against Manly in 1987, was to score the first try of the second half. Jesse Ramien’s try finally got Cronulla on the board but they could not build on it as Burgess completed his hat trick at the end to secure a deserved 22-6 win for Wigan, who claim their fourth World title.

Report (Rugby-League.com)

Runners Up Challenge – Warrington v Brisbane

Ball Control the key for Warrington in historic win

A superb first half with no handling errors was the key to Warrington getting their first ever win against top NRL opposition with a 27-18 victory over Brisbane. Kevin Brown, Ryan Atkins, Matty Russell and Tom Lineham all scored tries in a blistering first half showing leaving them 24-6 ahead at the break. Tries from James Roberts and David Mead hinted at a comeback from the Broncos in a much better second half showing. The boot of Declan Patton with a penalty and drop goals kept Warrington’s lead sufficiently strong to ensure the victory. This with Wigan’s victory mean Super League have won the World Club Challenge series for the first time since it was expanded beyond just a meeting of the Champions, a great weekend for British Rugby League.

Report (Rugby-League.com)

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MOON OF LIBERTY SCOREBOARD

Rugby League Results

World Club Challenge Match

Wigan Warriors 22 – Cronulla Sharks 6 – At The DW Stadium Wigan

World Club Challenge Series Match

Warrington Wolves 28 – Brisbane Broncos 17 – At The Halliwell Jones Stadium, Warrington

Wigan Warriors Are the World Club Champions

World Club Challenge Series – Super League 2 NRL 0

MOON OF LIBERTY STAR MAN – Joe Burgess (Wigan Warriors)

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Moon Of Liberty Sportsround – 24th Jan 2017

Sports News Digest – 24th Jan 2017 @ 6.10 pm

Sky Sports – Nadal stages excellent recovery to beat Alexander Zverev – Tennis

BBC Sport – Clermont knock Exeter out of the Champions Cup – Rugby Union

The Moon Of Liberty/ The Elitist’s Echo – Saturday Soccer round-up – Soccer

The Moon Of Liberty/ The Elitist’s Echo – Southampton v Leicester City – Soccer

Sky Sports – Saracens confirm home Quarter Final after win over Toulon – Rugby Union

BBC Sport – Ronnie O’Sullivan does it again – Snooker

The Moon Of Liberty/ The Elitist – One Day Internationals round-up – Cricket

The Moon Of Liberty/ Th Elitist – 2nd Test Match – New Zealand v Bangladesh – Cricket

The Moon Of Liberty/ The Elitist – NFL Championship Games round-up – NFL

The Moon Of Liberty/ The Elitist – UK Masters Snooker Final – Snooker

BBC Sport – Nicole Cooke says British cycling is run ‘by men for men’ – Cycling

BBC Sport – How America fell in love with Carl Frampton – Boxing

Sky Sports – Three new signing for Munster – Rugby Union

Sky Sports – Boris Becker has not ruled out re-joining Novak Djokovic – Tennis

Sky Football – Sunderland sign Joleon Lescott until the end of the season – Soccer

BBC Sport – Tiger Woods has concerns over his current schedule – Golf

Rugby League World – Joe Burgess refuses to rule out a move back to the NRL – Rugby League

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Moon Of Liberty Rugby League – NRL Round 25

Rugby League

NRL – Round 25

North Queensland opened round 25 with a 24-16 win over Canterbury helped by two tries from Ethan Lowe. Brisbane ruined Melbourne’s chances of securing the minor premiership top spot this week with a 26-16 win over the League leaders. Tom Opacic went over for two of the Broncos fives tries as Wayne Bennett’s side look in form heading towards the play-offs.The Green Machine of Canberra have secured third place in a high scoring 44-30 win over Manly. Jordan Rapana got a hat-trick for the Raiders. Penrith have secured their play-off place with a narrow win over Gold Coast. Matt Moylan’s drop goal with two minutes to go gave them a 15-14 win leaving Gold Coast’s own play off chances hanging in the balance going into the final weekend.

Given Melbourne’s loss Cronulla set up a final day showdown for top spot after thrashing Sydney City 37-12. Six tries and 11 points from James Maloney saw Cronulla move one point behind Melbourne, the two meet head to head next week.Western Suburbs kept their play-off hopes alive with a Sauaso Sue getting two tries in a 36-24 win in New Zealand. South Sydney thrashed bottom side Newcastle 34-12 with Alex Johnson going over twice. The round ended with ST George/Illwarra going down to Parramatta 30-18. Bevan French got a hat trick and Mike Gordon got 14 points including a try for the Eels. Neither side can make the play-off. This leaves two thing left to be decided. Melbourne meet Crounulla for top spot, and the final play-off place could go to either Gold Coast or Western Suburbs.

Reports – Canterbury v Nth Queensland (Fox Australia)  Melbourne v Brisbane (Courier Mail Manly v Canberra (ABC Australia)  Gold Coast v Penrith (ABC Australia)  NZ v Wests (Daily Telegraph Australia)  Cronulla v Sydney City (League Unlimited.com)  Newcastle v South Sydney (Daily Telegraph Australia)  Parramatta v ST George (Fox Australia)

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MOON OF LIBERTY SCOREBOARD

RUGBY LEAGUE

NRL – Round 25

Canterbury Bulldogs 16 – North Queensland Cowboys 24 – At  The Belmore Sports Groun, Sydney, New South Wales

Melbourne Storm 16 – Brisbane Broncos 26 – At AAMI Park, Olympic Boulevard, Melbourne, Victoria

Manly Sea Eagles 30 – Canberra Raiders 44 – At The Brookvale Oval, Brookvale, New South Wales 

Gold Coast Titans 14 – Penrith Panthers 15 – At Cbus Super Stadium, Gold Coast, Queensland 

New Zealand Warriors 24 – Western Suburbs Tigers 36 – At The Mount Smart Stadium, Penrose, Auckland

Cronulla Sharks 37 – Sydney City Roosters 12 – At The Southern Cross Group Stadium, Woolooware, New South Wales

Newcastle Knights 12 – South Sydney Rabbitohs 34 – At The Hunter Stadium, Neacastle, New South Wales

Parramatta Eels 30 – ST George/Illawarra Dragons 18 – At The Pirtek Stadium, Sydney, New South Wales

MOON OF LIBERTY STAR MAN – Jordan Rapana (Canberra Raiders)

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Moon Of Liberty Rugby League – NRL Round 23

Rugby League

NRL Round 23

South Sydney got a victory in New Zealand 41-22 against the Warriors. Joe Burgess got two of South Sydney’s six tries. Penrith also got six tries as they thrashed bottom side Newcastle 42-6 including two tries from Jake Mansour and 14 points from Nathan Cleary. Sydney City beat North Queensland 22-10 with the key try from Shaun Kenny-Dowall allowing the Roosters to move away after a tight contest.

The top two both suffered defeat. St George/Illawarra beat Cronulla 32-18 with two late tries from Tariq Sims sealing the victory. Melbourne could not take advantage as they ran into the NRL form team Canberra. Two tries from Joseph Leilua and 10 points from the boot of Jarrod Crocker saw the Raiders win 22-8. Canberra are in third but currently are playing the best Rugby in the NRL which is reinforced with this impressive win against the league leaders.

Reports –   ST George v Cronulla (Stuff.co.nz)   New Zealand v South Sydney (Stuff.co.nz)   Newcastle v Penrith (Leagueunlimited)  Sydney City v North Queensland (League Unlimited)  Canberra v Melbourne (Stuff.co.nz)

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MOON OF LIBERTY SCOREBOARD

RUGBY LEAGUE

NRL – Round 23

New Zealand Warriors 22 – South Sydney Rabbitohs 41 – At The Mount Smart Stadium, Penrose, Auckland

ST George/Illawarra Dragons 32 – Cronulla Sharks 18 – At WIN Jubilee Oval, Sydney, New South Wales

Newcastle Knights 6 – Penrith Panthers 42 – At The Hunter Stadium, Newcastle, New South Wales

Sydney City Roosters 22 – North Queensland Cowboys 10 – At Allianz Stadium, Sydney, New South Wales

Canberra Raiders 22 – Melbourne Storm 8 – At Gio Canberra Stadium, Bruce, Austalian Capital Terriroty

 MOON OF LIBERTY STAR MAN – Joseph Leilua (Canberra Raiders)

Moon Of Liberty Rugby League – NRL Round 22

Rugby League

NRL Round 22

New Zealand Warriors scored an impressive victory over in form Gold Coast. Two tries in seven minutes from Solomone Kata opened New Zealand a cushion they would not relinquish going on to win 24-14. Two tries in each half ensured Western Suburbs earned a win over North Queensland with Mitchell Moses adding 10 points with the boot as the Tigers won 26-14. The final game of the round saw Penrith see off Sydney City with a seven try thrashing. Tyrone Peachy scored two tries and Nathan Cleary contributed 14 points including a try as he took total control of the game. The Panthers ran out 38-18 winners.

Gold Coast v NZ Warriors (Stuff.co.nz)  Western Suburbs v North Queensland (Sydney Morning Herald) Penrith v Sydney City (Sydney Morning Herald)

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MOON OF LIBERTY SCOREBOARD

RUGBY LEAGUE

NRL Round 22

Gold Coast Titans 14 – New Zealand Warriors 24 – At The Cbus Super Stadium, Gold Coast, Queensland

Western Suburbs Tigers 26 – North Queensland Cowboys 14 – At The Leichhardt Oval, Sydney, New South Wales

Penrith Panthers 38 – Sydney City Roosters 18 – At The Pepper Stadium, Penrith, New South Wales

Moon Of Liberty Rugby League – NRL Round 22

Rugby League

NRL Round 22

In a tight contest Parramatta put a dent in Manly’s play off hopes with a single point victory at the Pirtec Stadium. With no tries in the second half Dylan Walker’s penalty gave Manly a 9-8 lead with 20 minutes to go with Daly Cherry Evans drop goal just before half time giving them the edge. But a penalty four minutes from time from Michael Gordon was enough to win it for the Eels. A try and 16 points from Moses Mbye contributed to Canterbury scoring a comfortable 28-14 win over bottom side Newcastle.

The the top end of the NRL the Green machine of Canberra scored an impressive win over leaders at start of play Cronulla to move themselves up to third in the table. Jordan Rapana scored two of Canberra’s four tries and Jordan Croker provided 14 points with the boot as the Raiders ran out 30-14 winners. It gave Melbourne the chance to go top which they duly did with a hard fought golden point win over South Sydney. An Adam Reynolds penalty leveled the scores at 14-14 late on but in the golden point period a drop goal from Cameron Smith took Melbourne above Cronulla to lead the NRL standings.

Reports – Parramatta v Manly (Fox Australia)  Newcastle v Canterbury (Fox Australia)

Cronulla v Canberra (Fox Australia) Melbourne v South Sydney (Fox Australia)

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MOON OF LIBERTY SCOREBOARD

RUGBY LEAGUE

NRL Round 22

Parramatta Eels 10 – Manly Sea Eagles 9 – At The Pritek Stadium, Sydney, New South Wales

Newcastle Knights 14 – Canterbury Bulldogs 28 – At The Hunter Stadium, Newcastle, New South Wales

Cronulla Sharks 14 – Canberra Raiders 30 – At The Southern Cross Group Stadium, Sydney, New South Wales

Melbourne Storm 15 – South Sydney Rabbitohs 14 – At AAMI Park, Olympic Boulevard, Melbourne, Victoria

MOON OF LIBERTY STAR MAN – Jordan Rapana (Canberra Raiders)