Dolphins secure upset win in Eels 'horror movie'
An under-strength Dolphins side has piled on the points in hot and humid conditions at TIO Stadium in Darwin to defeat the Eels.
An under-strength Dolphins side has piled on the points in hot and humid conditions at TIO Stadium in Darwin, which Immortal Andrew Johns described as a "horror movie" for the Eels.
A hat-trick to Jack Bostock and doubles to Max Plath and Tesi Niu saw the Dolphins come from behind to secure a 44-16 win at the Eels' home away from home.
The Eels dominated the opening 20 minutes of the match, their offloads hurting the Dolphins early, before the visitors flipped the script.
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The Dolphins surpassed 40 points on the scoreboard for the first time in the club's history in a performance that was sure to make coach Wayne Bennett smile. Bennett did not travel to Darwin because of illness.
After 16 minutes without scoring, Eels second-rower Shaun Lane broke the deadlock after being sent over with a pin-point pass from Joey Lussick.
Both sides then had a try crossed out because of errors as scrappy play dominated proceedings.
Will Penisini made it back-to-back tries for Parramatta — spinning out of the tackle to score in the corner.
However, the Dolphins soon responded through Bostock on the wing, who benefited from a double pump and subsequent loopy pass from playmaker Isaiya Katoa to score.
Sean Russell and Jamayne Isaako both failed to convert in front of goal for their side as the hosts took an 8-4 lead into the main break.
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To start the second half, Clint Gutherson added two points through a penalty shot after Oryn Keeley was penalised for putting pressure on the kicker.
But the Dolphins soon levelled the match as Niu found a gap in the Eels' defence and Jamayne hit his target.
Hamiso Tabuai-Fiidow's replacement at fullback, Trai Fuller, then sprinted downfield to score following a stunning linebreak from Josh Kerr and run from Jeremy Marshall-King.
"That was too easy," Andrew Johns said of the try in commentary for Nine.
Dylan Brown barged over for a consolation try in the 77th minute, breaking a 47-minute stranglehold by the Dolphins.
Making matters worse for the Eels, centre Daejarn Asi was rubbed out with a category-one head injury. He will now miss Parramatta's round-eight clash with Manly on Friday.