Match Details
Match Date	10th Aug, 2017
Opponent	South Sydney
Result	Loss 14-28
Coach	Des Hasler
Captain	James Graham
Venue	Homebush (ANZ Stadium)
Crowd	8,247
Referee	Gavin Badger Gavin Reynolds

Josh Reynolds’ Canterbury career wasn’t meant to end like this – injured in an ordinary 28-14 loss to South Sydney, the latest chapter in a very ordinary Bulldogs season.

The gutsy five-eighth may well have worn his heart on his blue and white sleeve for the last time after suffering a calf injury at a desolate ANZ Stadium on Thursday, which hosted just 8247 fans.

In his 137th game as a Bulldog ahead of an impending move to the Wests Tigers for season 2018, Reynolds limped from the field midway through the first half and went straight down the tunnel.

He was ruled out of the game, and cut a dejected figure in his beloved Canterbury dressing room. Souths pair Sam Burgess and John Sutton respectfully raced over to shake Reynolds’ hand once the fulltime siren sounded. A scan on Friday will determine whether or not Reynolds still has a role to play on the field as Canterbury’s hellish season peters out.

They’ll need him if they’re to spark a consolation win over Manly, Gold Coast or St George-Illawarra in the final three rounds.

As has been the case all year Canterbury’s attack was uninspiring on Thursday in a match between two clubs who won’t feature in September, and they were once against tryless in the first half.

They managed just two four pointers after the break. One to Chase Stanley who was in the right spot when Matt Frawley’s cross field kick spurted out of an aerial battle, and one to captain James Graham whose brute strength close to the line ensured he wouldn’t finish with a duck egg this year.

The Rabbitohs meanwhile, who haven’t had a huge amount to shout about in 2017, looked a step closer to the side that downed Canterbury at the same venue less than three years ago for a drought-breaking grand final win. Englishman Tom Burgess had arguably his best match of the season.

Bryson Goodwin scored with five minutes left to down the Dragons last weekend, and he had another one five minutes into this game, finishing off a backline move in the left corner. They should’ve had a second moments after Angus Crichton entered the fray from the bench. He beat a couple of defenders and threw a pass back to a flying Damien Cook on his inside. The pass missed Cook by several metres on that occasion, but the Rabbitohs soon made amends. This time it was Cook charging through the Bulldogs’ ragged marker defence, and he drew fullback Will Hopoate expertly before hitting Alex Johnston on the chest.

That put him one clear of Melbourne flyer Suliasi Vunivalu in an intriguing NRL’s try scoring race, and he skipped two clear with a try early in the second half. Aaron Gray also crossed in the second half scoring his first try of the season.

Source: The Sydney Morning Herald

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