“We put a lot of work into them in the first half and came out in the second half and played more our style of game… I’m really happy with how our defence is building, we’re getting better every week… The Good Friday game is going to be a great occasion for us back here with a big crowd and it looks like we might have some tough [selection] decisions to make there.”
Due credit to a 14-man Knights side, which was down two men inside the first two minutes.
Marquee forward Jacob Saifiti went down not in the warm-up or once play began, but in between, apparently suffering a calf injury as he ran out of the Accor Stadium tunnel and onto the paddock.
Winger James Schiller joined him as a scratching 90 seconds later after he was left bloodied, dazed and failed his subsequent HIA from a head clash with Daniel Suluka-Fifita.
Halfback Jack Cogger played on with a dislocated finger, yet their reshuffled defensive line held on when the Knights had every right to wilt.
“In terms of who we are as a team and our DNA I think we showed that tonight,” captain Kalyn Ponga said.
Adam O’Brien added: “I’m really proud of them to go through what they did personnel-wise … we can build on that performance – the foundations of being a gritty team are back.”
Despite enjoying 60 per cent of first-half possession and 70 per cent of territory, the Bulldogs couldn’t crack anything more than an early penalty goal to skipper Stephen Crichton.
Stephen Crichton charges for the line.Credit: Getty Images
The Bulldogs captain was floored by an ongoing nerve issue in his shoulder when he made incidental contact with Knights forward Adam Elliott. Crichton eventually picked himself up and played on and once the second half began, the points did too.
Josh Curran was on the end of a bat-down from returning winger Jacob Kiraz, who was a regular aerial target lining up opposite stocky Newcastle winger Greg Marzhew.
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Rookie Jack Todd charged onto his first NRL four-pointer after Phoenix Crossland was sin-binned for tripping.
When the Bunker denied Kurt Mann a try in his 200th NRL game, the NRL’s multicultural round was celebrated by the crowd with an outpouring of expletives from all around the globe.
The Knights were doing the same when Jack Hetherington withdrew with a shoulder concern, but still they clung on grimly.
But when Mann came again from short range, the milestone man with a three-week-old black eye still lingering, they couldn’t stop him.
Canterbury are now 5-0 for the first time since 1993, with an NRL-best defence that has statisticians scouring the record books.
And the Dogs fans, after almost a decade of heartache, are understandably chuffed with it all.
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Michael Chammas and Andrew “Joey” Johns dissect the upcoming NRL round, plus the latest footy news, results and analysis. Sign up for the Sin Bin newsletter.
