NRL: Kiwi hearts bleed for unlucky Marshall

Benji Marshall is tackled by Beau Scott during the second NRL Preliminary Final match. Photo / Getty Images

Call it a professional courtesy or Kiwis solidarity, but the beneficiaries when Benji Marshall flunked the final few minutes of Saturday night's NRL preliminary final still heaped praise of the downcast New Zealand captain.

Marshall's kick out on the full seven minutes from time in the cliffhanger between the Wests Tigers and St George Illawarra at ANZ Stadium proved the catalyst for the killer play. From the resulting set, opposing five-eighth Jamie Soward nailed a 35-metre field goal to break a 12-12 deadlock and send the Dragons into their first grand final since 1999.

Wests Tigers coach Tim Sheens opened the defence of the mercurial playmaker by refusing to single out his personnel for criticism.

Wing and part-time comic Beau Ryan, whose hopeful kick when the Tigers maybe had one play remaining was thrown gleefully dead by Darius Boyd, also escaped condemnation while Tigers captain Robbie Farah also produced a poor tactical kicking display at the worst possible time.

However, it was Marshall's wonky kick and the consequences that were a focal point of the Dragon's victory.

"It's just unfortunate he coughed up the ball for the field goal," said Jason Nightingale, one of the Dragon's two Kiwis try-scorers.

"I thought Benji was outstanding, he found holes in us all day, he was probing. It shouldn't be forgotten he's had a great year."

Nathan Fien, who delivered the perfect pass for Soward to pot the one-pointer, also sympathised with Marshall.

"You feel for him. He tried his heart out there, he created so many opportunities. He kept us guessing, he was sensational, he was most definitely the best player on the field," said Fien, who is likely to combine with Marshall in the halves during next month's Four Nations tournament.

Soward also played down his role in the game's decisive moment.

"Nathan Fien gets all the credit, he put the pass on the chest where it needed to be.

"I'm expected to make those plays and it was good that all the practice paid off."

Fien said once Marshall gifted the Dragons possession 60m out, the field goal was the obvious play once they rumbled into range.

"We just knew what was required and thankfully Sowy [Soward] just nutted it. We'd been practising all week, we knew it could be tight and could come down to something like that.

Marshall, meanwhile, was the last player to exit the Tigers dressing room, disconsolate but philosophical.

"That's footy. When it's so tight I'm the one who has to try things," he said.

"Nine times out of 10 it would have come off for me. It's disappointing but you can't dwell on it."

Before that skewed kick - and a knock on 90 seconds later - there was another sign the footballing gods were conspiring against him.

In the 57th minute he grubbered through the defensive line deep in Dragons territory, regained the ball and released a trademark no-look flick pass.

On a dream night it would have been grabbed by a teammate and carried over the line; instead it went to ground for a Dragon to retrieve.

- NZPA