Match Details
Match Date	30th Mar, 2008
Opponent	Wests Tigers
Result	Win 32-12
Coach	Steven Folkes
Captain	Andrew Ryan
Venue	Homebush (ANZ Stadium)
Crowd	21,546
Referee	Jared Maxwell

A dominant Bulldogs pack brought Wests Tigers unbeaten start to the season to a grinding halt with a powerful 32-12 win in their NRL clash at ANZ Stadium.
The Bulldogs scored four tries to the Tigers two, with Hazem El Masri scoring one and kicking four goals to celebrate his record-breaking 273rd game in the blue and white, eclipsing the previous mark held by premiership winning captain Steve Mortimer.

The Tigers started well but were eventually buried under an avalanche of Bulldogs power and some poor kicking options late in the tackle count.

It was summed up in the 59th minute, when John Morris grubber-kicked straight into the legs of Sonny Bill Williams. The New Zealand juggernaut showed no signs of the calf troubles that had him in doubt for the match as he raced 80 metres to score beside the posts for a 20-12 lead.

Williams earned a standing ovation as he was taken off for the remainder of the game following the long-distance try. The Bulldogs confirmed the two competition points with tries to Heka Nanai and skipper Andrew Ryan in the final five minutes.

The Tigers opened the scoring after five minutes when Brett Hodgson - showing no ill-effects of last week's concussion - handled twice as the ball hit the ground to put Beau Ryan over.

A Holdsworth grubber for Luke Patten locked it up at 6-all after 20 minutes, and there was even less resistance for his second try when he dummied his way past a stunned Chris Lawrence for a 10-6 lead.

The Bulldogs gifted the Tigers the lead when Michael Sullivan threw a pass from dummy half which rolled aimlessly across the field, from where Dene Halatau pounced.

But that was the last of the joy for the Tigers, the Bulldogs scoring 22 unanswered points after the break as the visitors wilted against the much bigger Bulldogs forwards.

Source: AAP

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