Match Details
Match Date	4th Mar, 2001
Opponent	Newcastle
Result	Draw 28-28
Coach	Steven Folkes
Captain	Darren Britt
Venue	Sydney Showground Homebush
Crowd	18,109
Referee	Steve Clark

No matter how history judges the Bulldogs' move to the Sydney Showground, the first day of their tenancy will not be quickly forgotten.

The Dogs, tipped to finish among the stragglers this season, are out on their own as competition leaders after three rounds following a 28-28 draw with Newcastle before 18,109 supporters at the Olympic venue.

The Knights tied the game two minutes from time, halfback Andrew Johns converting a try by prop Glenn Grief. At 24-16 with 10 minutes left, all had looked lost for Newcastle.

But that was just a small part of the story on a dramatic night at Homebush.

Other subplots included:

❑ Fullback Robbie O'Davis collapsing in the tunnel as the team returned to the field at half-time, only to return for the gripping finale.

❑ A contentious penalty in the 69th minute, on a touch judge's report, swinging the game back in Newcastle's favour.

❑ Players from both sides, but particularly the Knights, waging a running battle with referee Steve Clark.

❑ Bulldogs centre Willie Talau leaping to his feet while receiving medical attention to pull off a try-saving tackle.

❑ Dogs skipper Darren Britt and halfback Craig Polla-Mounter imploring Clark to go to video referee John Gocher to check on a forward pass in the lead-up to the Grief try.

❑ Bulldogs fullback Luke Patten snatching the ball off Newcastle kick Bill Peden when he was in the clear. Patten also pulled off a couple of spectacular try-saving tackles.

❑ Newcastle second-rower Ben Kennedy's superb pass to Grief for that touchdown and the prodigious performance of Bulldogs pup Braith Anasta.

It was, then, an understatement when Knights coach Michael Hagan said: "There were some freakish things . . . which changed the course of the game".

There were four tries in the last 14 minutes but yesterday's frenetic match see-sawed throughout.

In the first half, the Knights had a try disallowed, the Bulldogs scored one, the Knights scored one, Dogs again, Newcastle again. The Novocastrians led 14-12 at the break.

But when former Knights forward Paul Rauhihi, who last week mildly taunted his former teammates in the press, burst through a tiring defence in the 48th minute, it was with the force of a gigantic fullstop.

The Bulldogs had the momentum, the Knights' errors became more frequent and in the 66th minute Anasta crossed with barely a hand laid on him.

Asked to nominate a moment in which the second of the two competition points up for grabs yesterday slipped from their grasp last night, home team coach Steve Folkes didn't hesitate.

It was a penalty against centre Willie Talau and winger Brett Howland for backslamming Knights three-quarter Mark Hughes in the 69th minute with his side leading 24-16.

On a linesman's report, Talau was also mentioned. "Touch judges should stay on the touchline, that's my call," said Folkes. "The referee was only 15 metres from it and he wasn't watching anything else.

"He saw it and was about to rule a scrum. I don't know why the touch judge entered the field."

Britt questioned the decision and was told: "He could only rule on what the touch judge told him, he had to go with that."

A minute later, Knights five-eighth Sean Rudder scored near the posts, two minutes after that he passed the ball directly to op-posing winger Hazem El Masri who ran 60 metres to score.

Newcastle winger Danny Buderus had a try disallowed, Patten pulled off a try-saver or two and player after player stepped up to be heroes only to miss out by a hair's breadth.

And even after the Grief try, Newcastle raided again, their attack running out of space on the left side when an amazing victory looked possible.

"It feels like a loss," said Folkes.

Newcastle doctor Peter McGeoch said O'Davis had suffered a vaso vagal attack - shock from having received a headcut in the first half and local anaesthetic followed by stitches during the break.

O'Davis said: "Before I knew it, I was face down on the turf. I was numb down my right hand side - because when I fell I landed on my funnybone. I was crook as a dog. I was out there [on the sideline], I was still a bit blurry. Hughesy got knocked unconscious and that was me, I was on."

Earlier, Hagan sent a message out that only skipper Andrew Johns was allowed to talk to Clark. Johns spoke to Clark as the teams were leaving the field at half-time. "It was just their defence, they're just up-and-in and we didn't have much room".

The Knights announced before kick-off that Australian World Cup winger Adam MacDougall would not, after all, make his return from injury. Youngster Justin Ryder, knocked out last week, took his place. MacDougall was the most fortunate of the players on either side yesterday. He got to watch.

Source: The Sydney Morning Herald

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