Match Details
Match Date	19th Jun, 2009
Opponent	Penrith
Result	Win 19-12
Coach	Kevin Moore
Captain	Andrew Ryan
Venue	Homebush (ANZ Stadium)
Crowd	13,992
Referee	Gavin Badger Matt Cecchin

The Bulldogs have established their position at the top of the NRL table with a scrappy 19-12 victory over the Penrith Panthers at ANZ Stadium on Friday.

The Panthers came within two points of the lead after a solo try from Frank Pritchard with nine minutes remaining but a try to Hazem el Masri, his second of the match, and a late Kimmorley field goal secured the win.

However the match was marred by a litany of handling errors that plagued both teams. The first half alone bore 17 errors.

It was torture. Doesn't matter how many times you talk about it and say hold onto the ball'. It was just one of those nights, said Bulldogs captain Andrew Ryan.

Bulldogs coach Kevin Moore conceded that the 6-all halftime score flattered the Dogs, who had spent most of the opening forty minutes grimly defending their line.

There's times when you've got to win when you're not playing your best footy. We did what we had to do to get away with the two points tonight nothing more, he said.

However the hard-fought win may have come at a cost.

Boom centre Jamal Idris hyper extended his left elbow in the 65th minute as he attempted to fend off the tackle of Maurice Blair. He will undergo an MRI on Saturday to determine the extent of the damage.

The Panthers had earlier come out firing in the first half with an attacking brand of football that defied the absence of captain Petero Civoniceva, Luke Lewis and Lachlan Coote amongst others.

And it didn't take long to have the desired impact.

After six minute the Panthers found superior numbers on the left and wing Gavin Cooper overpowered Idris to reach out and plant the ball on the tryline.

As the Bulldogs fell victim to their own slippery hands, the Panthers had every chance to extend their lead.

Hooker Paul Aiton tried to sneak through from dummy half but fell just short under the challenge of Ben Roberts.

Minutes later fullback Jarrod Sammut inexplicably went himself on the last tackle with the Dogs' line exposed to the left.

But after absorbing sustained pressure, the Bulldogs attack finally found its teeth in the 30th minute.

Halfback Brett Kimmorley engineered a short side show-and-go that unleashed wing Bryson Goodwin for his twelfth try of the season.

El Masri's conversion locked the score up at 6-6 where it remained at halftime thanks to a procession of unforced errors that brought the first forty minutes to a close.

Coming out from the Dogs' line early in the second half Kimmorley chipped, regathered and kicked again for the in-goal. However the ball refused to sit up for a flying Josh Morris and beat him touch-in-goal.

The bouncing ball proved more fortuitous for the Dogs moments later.

After a Goodwin break down the left-hand touch, Ben Roberts put up a cross field chip that sat up perfectly for evergreen El Masri to acrobatically score the try.

That was a bit of magic wasn't it? Hazem timed his run perfectly and held onto a slippery ball with not much room to work in. It was a great try, said coach Moore.

Pritchard's 71st minute charge to the line gave Penrith hope of a boilover but El Masri was soon on the receiving end of a Luke Patten offload to dive over for the decisive score.

A field goal from man-of-the-match Kimmorley in the dying moments put the result beyond doubt.

Source: Evan Sieff

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