The Kurri Kurri Bulldogs bulldozed their way into third position after upsetting high-flying Lakes United 24-16 at The Graveyard at the weekend.

In front of a large and boisterous home crowd, the hosts dominated the Seagulls early, completing 12 of their first 13 sets in the opening 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, Lakes managed just one during the same period.

The defensive workload drained the Seagulls’ energy reserves and made life extremely difficult for them in the closing stages.

Kurri opened the scoring inside the opening five minutes when, attacking the Lakes line, Jack Stringer generated quick ruck speed with a rapid play-the-ball, allowing Bulldogs hooker Brock Portsmouth to burrow his way over beneath the posts despite the attention of three Seagulls defenders.

The home side led 6-0.

The Bulldogs continued to play with speed and enthusiasm, shifting the football from east to west with purpose.

Their second try came when Reid Alchin, running a sweeping line, spun out of attempted tackles from Potts and Butler before producing a brilliant around-the-corner offload for a flying Brodie Linnane to score in the corner for a 10-0 margin.

Kurri struck again almost immediately.

Off the back of another well-executed block play, Bulldogs fullback Hemi Knebel produced what was arguably the pass of the match, sending Kodi Crowther over untouched in the eastern corner.

At 16-0 after just 20 minutes, it felt as though the ghosts of the great Bulldogs sides of 1993-95 were rising once again from The Graveyard.

With Lakes finally earning some possession inside the opposition red zone, Will Smith put through a kick, which somehow fell into the arms of Matt Cooper at lightning speed, allowing him to score the simplest of tries beneath the posts.

The Seagulls reduced it to 16-6 and gave themselves a glimmer of hope.

But, the Bulldogs responded 10 minutes later when, camped on the Lakes’ tryline, Kynan Butler put through a clever grubber for Matt Woolnough to score and extend the lead to 20-6 at half-time, leaving Kurri firmly in the box seat.

At the break, the Seagulls spoke about remaining patient and trusting that the tide would eventually turn with both possession and the refereeing decisions.

It did exactly that.

Eleven minutes into the second half, Smith dummied his way into the line before sending Cooper over beside the posts to narrow the gap to 20-12.

Lakes were now winning both the possession battle and the play-the-ball speed as momentum shifted towards the visitors.

Then Ryan Potts, one of the competition’s most underrated ball runners, entered the contest.

Attacking the Bulldogs’ line, he sold a subtle dummy before stepping off his right foot to slam the ball down and reduce the deficit to just four points at 20-16.

Fifteen minutes from full-time, however, Kurri turned to one of the oldest tricks in the book.

As any local will tell you, the place to put up a high ball is in the corner near the Old Boys Shed.

The afternoon sun obscures the vision, while the soundtrack from the faithful is loud, relentless and personal.

Josh Moffitt hoisted the ball into that exact location, where Lakes winger Isaac Thompson was unable to come down with it.

Cult hero Jack Tamburini reacted quickest, gathering the loose pill before flicking it into the waiting arms of Crowther, who crossed for his second try right in front of the Old Boys Shed.

The roar that followed almost lifted the roof off the facility.

Kurri defended resolutely over the final 10 minutes against a determined Lakes outfit to run out deserved 24-16 winners.

At Harker Oval, Western Suburbs controlled proceedings from start to finish to defeat South Newcastle 16-8.

Siteni Taukamo debuted at halfback for the Lions in his first outing, but it wasn’t enough as the Rosellas remained in sixth position, just one competition point behind fifth-placed Lakes.

Wests now prepare for a huge showdown with Cessnock this weekend, while South Newcastle remains six points clear of third-placed Kurri.

At Lyall Peacock Field, the Macquarie Scorpions produced the upset of the round, defeating Central Newcastle 14-6 during their Indigenous Round celebrations.

Dean Morris, Jordan Eckford and Callan Briggs all crossed for tries on the heavy Toronto surface to register the side’s second win of the NEWRL season.

At Raymond Terrace, reigning premiers Maitland produced another clinical display, defeating the Northern Hawks 28-0 in front of a healthy crowd.

Luke Knight, Sam Anderson, Brock Lamb and new recruit Jake Davis were all outstanding, with the latter particularly impressive out of dummy half, identifying space around the ruck and running square and direct throughout the afternoon.

The Hawks now sit in eighth spot, although head coach Steve Simpson remains confident his outfit can still force its way into the top five during the second half of the season.

On Sunday at EDSAAC Oval, The Entrance bounced back from last week’s narrow loss to Maitland with a timely 22-12 victory over Cessnock.

With both clubs still holding a game in hand, the return clash at Cessnock later in the season looms as a pivotal fixture in the race for the finals.

Connor Kirkwood was outstanding for the Tigers in a grinding contest that sees The Entrance possibly enjoying a slightly easier run home than the Goannas.

The Tigers travel to Raymond Terrace next weekend to take on the Hawks, while Cessnock hosts Western Suburbs in what shapes as another season-defining clash at Cessnock Sportsground.

For more sports stories:

• Adams departs Jets for overseas challenge
• Brown’s clutch field goal ends Dolphins’ record winning streak
• Jets ready for Lolley’s sweet arrival

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