Sign Up
..... Connect Australia with the world.
Categories

Posted: 2017-03-16 11:44:52

Posted March 16, 2017 22:44:52

Melbourne has snatched victory from the Brisbane Broncos with an unbelievably lucky try in the 77th minute of a hard-fought clash at AAMI Park.

Full-back Billy Slater's return was supposed to be the headline, but he was merely a sideshow to a crazy end to the 14-12 victory.

After weathering a mountain of Storm attack throughout the game, the Broncos were defending on their tryline with a four-point lead when Ryley Jacks took on the defence.

The rookie double pumped is way through one tackle, then threw a pass that was broken up by Jordan Kahu, then took a deflection off Ben Hunt's hand and ultimately into the hands of Josh Addo-Carr in the in-goal.

Captain Cameron Smith slotted the sideline conversion and the Storm walked away from an often spiteful encounter with two points.

The night had started in near-opposite fashion, when unsure hands from Jacks allowed Broncos speed demon James Roberts to go 65 metres to score under the posts.

Jacks struck back with a strong effort in the 22nd minute and the Storm took an 8-6 lead to the break thanks to Smith's boot.

Nine minutes after the break, Hunt gave the Broncos a pivotal lead with a typically quick-stepping solo effort from about 15 metres out.

Then came the hard part; keeping out the most relentless attack in the lead.

The Broncos held the line against the home side for most of the second half, but it looked to have been broken when centre Will Chambers crossed with 13 minutes left in the match.

He slammed the ball down just short of the line in a tackle by winger Corey Oates, but appeared to keep a level of control as he rolled the ball on to the chalk.

Unfortunately for the home fans, the red light flashed from the bunker and they were forced to wait 10 minutes for Addo-Carr's stunning — if incredibly fortuitous — game-winner.

The bad news for the Storm may come from the doctor's office, with Cameron Munster spitting blood as he came to the sideline after a second-half head knock.

Meanwhile, Slater, playing just his second game since 2015 and his first since round one last year, came through unscathed.

He was initially named to start at full-back but ultimately made his return off the bench, with rookie half Jacks starting at five-eighth and Munster back at full-back.

The AMMI Park crowd erupted when he was introduced midway through the first half.

The 33-year-old was not his explosive best and looked well and truly gassed in the second half, but looked strong enough as he ran the ball 15 times for 117 metres.

Topics: nrl, rugby-league, sport, melbourne-3000, vic, brisbane-4000, qld, australia

View More
  • 0 Comment(s)
Captcha Challenge
Reload Image
Type in the verification code above