Newcastle had been on the cusp of the top four before their surprise loss to the Warriors two weeks ago, which was followed by last week's defeat at the hands of Souths. St George have a fairly unspectacular roster and have had a tough season, though this result moves them off the bottom of the table.
It was an ordinary first half. The Dragons came the closest to scoring, twice having tries ruled out by the video referee; once justifiably as Josh Dugan touched the sideline, once confusingly as Brett Morris seemed to score a legitimate touchdown. They slightly shaded the half but there was a real lack of quality.
The Dragons have struggled offensively all season, before last night they had the second worst attacking record (only behind the Tigers) in the competition. Coach Steve Price took the radical step of dropping Jamie Soward, who has been the fulcrum of the Dragons' attack for several years.
Chase Stanley took his place and made a promising start; he gave the Dragons' backline a more direct thrust and provided a genuine threat with the ball in hand, something that Soward rarely offers.
The first try of a dour contest took 48 minutes to arrive with Joseph Leilua crossing in the corner after quick hands from Darius Boyd. It gave the home side an 8-0 lead and in the context of this match, it seemed like a veritable mountain to climb. Dugan started the comeback with a spectacular take of a Nathan Fien bomb in the 56th minute, catching it AFL style way above his head. He went one better in the 77th minute, slicing through four defenders in a 20-metre burst close to the line to claim the win.
Knights 8 (J. Leilua try; T. Roberts 2 goals)
Dragons 14 (J. Dugan 2 tries; J. Dugan 2 goals, C. King goal). Halftime: 4-0.
