As it happened: Broncos, Sharks march on; Raiders open their account

Full-time: The Raiders deny the Warriors a miraculous comeback with 11 players and claim their first win of the season. Canberra emerge 20-16 winners in Hamilton. Up front Sophie Holyman was immense for the Green Machine, clocking team0high numbers for tackles (40) and run metres (125). It's perhaps a moral victory for the Warriors though, who held on admirably despite playing 35 minutes with only 11 players. Harata Butler was a standout for the hosts, while winger Payton Takimoana starred with a hat-trick. 

66th min: A hat-trick for Payton Takimoana and we have a game on our hands in Hamilton! The Warriors fling the ball wide and Takimoana steps back inside and carries a defender over the line. It's another poor conversion attempt from Emmanita Paki that is well away. 20-16 Raiders. 

66th min: The Warriors are pushing hard for another try which would set up a grandstand finish. The Raiders have just unsuccessfully challenged a decision of a knock on against Sereana Naitokatoka. The Warriors start a new set of six 10 metres out from the try line. 

57th min: After initially getting a new set of six after Canberra touched the ball while attempting to defuse a bomb, the Warriors are judged to have knocked on. They challenge that decision, but the Bunker confirms the on-field decision. Canberra ball and the Warriors are out of challenges. 

55th min: Payton Takimoana is over again - this time winning the race to an in-goal grubber and managing to ground it in the wet conditions. Another missed conversion denies the hosts the chance to bring it back to a one-score game, but they're refusing to go away despite being two players down. It's 20-12 to the Raiders. 

53rd min: The action is paused while Raiders forward Sophie Holyman is attended to on the field for an injury. Play resumes and it's the Warriors with a penalty for a tackle infringement. They kick for touch and go back on the attack. 

52nd min: Big defensive play from the Raiders to hold Kaiyah Atai up over the line on last tackle. 

47th min: Elise Simpson carves through the Warriors on a 30-metre solo effort for her side's fourth try. That's a blow to the to the mini comeback the Warriors were generating. The conversion attempt is no good, so it remains a two-score game for now. 20-8. 

42nd min: The Warriors successfully challenge an on-field ruling of a knock on and keep possession. They are on the attack inside the opposition 20. 

40th min: Harata Butler has passed her HIA and is back on the field. That's a huge boost for the Warriors. 

38th min: The Warriors fly out of the gates for the second half and open the scoring. It's Lavinia Tauhalaliku who goes over in her club debut. Emmanita Paki can't convert for the extras, but it's back to an eight-point game. Raiders 16-8. 

Half-time: Time for oranges in Hamilton, and it's been an action-packed opening 35. The Warriors have had two players sent off within the space of a few minutes of each other for dangerous incidents, one of which resulted in Monalisa Soliola having to be assisted from the field. The Raiders were already looking the much better side before all of that, but somehow it remains a two-score game still. Canberra lead 16-4. 

34th min: The madness continues as the Warriors achieve a rare scrum win against the feed! A chance to lodge more points before the break. 

32nd min: Another blow for the Warriors as bench forward Harata Butler is ordered to undergo a HIA. 

29th min: Against the run of play the 11-woman Warriors get one back through Payton Takimoana. It's the winger's eighth try this season. Emmanita Paki missed the kick from up against the sideline. 16-4 to the Raiders. 

26th min: Easy work for Mackenzie Wiki out wide, as the Raiders strip the Warriors down the left and cross through their Kiwi winger. Zahara Temara can't add the extras. Raiders 16 Warriors 0. 

25th minute: Incredible scenes in Hamilton as the Warriors have a second player sent from the field within three minutes. This time it's Tysha Ikenasio who is sent for a tackle which has left Monalisa Soliola having to be helped from the field. 

22nd min: We've got a send off. Matekino Gray is sent from the field for an ugly lifting tackle on Chloe Saunders. A huge moment in this game. 

18th min: Sereana Naitokatoka hits the go-button from close range and squeezes through a gap in the Warriors' goal-line defence. Zahara Temara can't add the extras this time. It's 12-0 to Canberra. 

14th min: Capri Paekau coughs up the Warriors' fifth error of the match and Canberra are let off the hook. 

12th min: Laishon Albert-Jones drives the kick-off low and into touch for a second time and earns possession back for her side. Clever play from the Warriors, but it remains to be seen if they can hold onto the ball for long enough to take advantage of it. 

10th min: The Warriors are pinged for a penalty right in front of the posts and Zahara Temara takes the opportunity to kick an easy two and extend her side's lead to 8-0. The home side's discipline, or lack of it, is causing issues already in Hamilton. 

6th min: After finding touch on the restart of play, the Warriors march down field and force a dropout. But on the first carry of the new set they knock on. 

3rd min: The Raiders make the Warriors pay for the early error, hoisting a bomb which isn't defused by the hosts and instead ends up in the hands of Jordyn Preston who goes over for the first try of her NRLW career. Zahara Temara converts for a 6-0 lead.

1st min: The greasy conditions in Hamilton have claimed their first victim, with Warriors forward Maarire Puketapu knocking on on the opening set of the game.

 

Late Mail

Warriors: No further changes for the Warriors an hour before kick-off, but the list of changes from last week is lengthy nonetheless. With captain Apii Nicholls (pectoral) and halves duo Emily Curtain (knee) and Patricia Maliepo (calf) all ruled out with injury. The major changes see former North Queensland winger Lavinia Tauhalaliku will come in to make her club debut, while Emmanita Paki is the new fullback. Shakira Baker (return from a pectoral injury) and Lydia Turua-Quedley are the new halves pairing, with Capri Paekau coming from the bench to start at hooker. Kaiyah Atai comes from the second row to the centres, while Matekino Gray comes from the bench into the starting second row spot. Avery-Rose Carmont and Makayla Eli are the new faces on the bench. 

Raiders: Hollie-Mae Dodd is out and Jordyn Preston comes in to start in the second row. Amelia Pasikala joins the bench from the reserves. Earlier, Mackenzie Wiki was named to shift to the wing to cover for Madison Bartlett (collarbone), with Cheyelle Robins-Reti coming into the centres. No late changes an hour before kick-off. 

Numbers Game

• The Warriors have won only one of three games played on New Zealand soil.
• The Raiders will play their first game in New Zealand.
• Warriors winger Payten Takimoana has scored seven tries in her last five games.
• The Raiders have six New Zealand-born players in their line-up.
• The Warriors have conceded only 12 points in their last two games.

 

Broncos v Eels at Suncorp Stadium

Full-time: It ends 38-4 to the Broncos at Suncorp Stadium. The completely dominant performance from the Scott Prince’s charges puts them top of the NRLW ladder for the time being, with nearest rivals the Roosters still to play. Tamika Upton finishes with five try involvements, while centre Julia Robinson ran for 281 metres in addition to scoring a double. Mele Hufanga and Romy Teitzel also got over for two tries. It’s a big blow to Parramatta’s hopes of cracking the top six, with 45 missed tackles telling much of the story on a day in which they allowed their opponents to run for nearly 500 metres more than them.   

63rd min: Powerhouse winger Martha Mataele scores a nice consolation try for the Eels, claiming a high ball and then bumping off defenders on her way to the line from close range. Rachael Pearson can't convert. 38-4 Broncos. 

62nd min: After a small skirmish on field between the Cherrington sisters and Gayle Broughton, play resumes, with Lauren Dam placed on report for an unrelated incident. 

60th min: A brief reprieve for the Eels as Brisbane are denied another likely try by a forward pass call. 

54th min: A fourth try in five sets for Brisbane! This is turning into a bloodbath and Parramatta don't seem to have an answer for anything the Broncos do right now. It's Romy Teitzel who goes over for her second, to become the outright leading points scorer for her club. Her conversion that follows is good too and it's 38-0. 

51st min: That was way too easy for Mele Hufanga, who grabs her second directly off a scrum with little more than a fingertip laid on her. The only thing stopping this from turning really ugly for the Eels is Romy Teitzel's struggles off the boot, with the forward wide again this time. 32-0 Broncos. 

48th min: Romy Teitzel goes over for another Brisbane try. Her ensuing conversion also sees her draw even with Ali Brigginshaw as Brisbane's all-time leading points scorer. The home side lead 28-0. 

45th min: The Broncos are at it again, with Mele Hufanga flying over after receiving yet another quality final pass from Tamika Upton. Romy Teitzel can't convert, but it's a likely 10-point turnaround after Brisbane saved a try at the other end minutes later. 22-0 Broncos. 

42nd min: A huge effort from Tamika Upton denies Kennedy Cherrington a certain try, with the Brisbane No.1 stripping the ball from the forward as she fell over the line. It ends in a penalty for an illegal strip, but the Eels knock on a few plays into the next set anyway. 

37th min: A clever in-goal escape from Hayley Maddick and Tamika Upton prevents an early dropout for the Broncos. That's a more positive start to the second stanza from the Eels. 

Half-time: A dominant opening period for the Broncos to lead 18-0. Brisbane have run for 300 metres more than their opponents on the back of 58 percent possession, with three tries in the eight minutes before the break seeing them run away on the scoreboard. 

35th min: Julia Robinson adds an exclamation mark to the late-stanza surge from the Broncos with her second try of the afternoon. Tamika Upton plays a key role in laying on the try, with a clever double-pump holding up the defence and allowing her Maroons teammate to stroll through a gap. This time Romy Teitzel is on target with the kick and Brisbane lead 18-0. 

34th min: Parramatta are penalised for a late hit on Ali Brigginshaw, which ends in Kennedy Cherrington being put on report. The Broncos opt to kick for touch and push for a fourth try before half-time. 

32nd min: Julia Robinson steps her way through for her side's third try. That is a huge blow for the Eels just before the break, but it once again follows a period of poor discipline in which they gifted Brisbane good field position. Another miss from Teitzel leaves it at 12-0. 

29th min: Destiny Brill bamboozles the Eels with a nine-metre dart from dummy-half to earn Brisbane their second try. It's a clever piece of play from the Queenslander, but also questionable defence by Parramatta. Romy Teitzel's conversion pings off the post and away. 8-0 Brisbane. 

28th min: The Eels give away consecutive penalties just as they looked to be building some momentum. The pressure is back on the visitors in the shadows of half-time. 

25th min: Ali Brigginshaw is penalised for holding down in the tackle on a kick chase and gives Parramatta a piggy-back out of their own end. 

20th min: The Broncos go close again, with Tamika Upton firing a cut-out pass towards Kerri Johnson with an open line beckoning, but the ball beats the winger and flies over the sideline. 

17th min: A nasty head clash between Rosemarie Beckett and captain Mahalia Murphy results in both players reeling away from a tackle. For now at least, both remain on the field. 

13th min: An opportunity goes begging for the visitors as Fleur Ginn knocks on metres out from the line with space in front of her.  

13th min: A quick hit back to reality from Hayley Maddick, who spills the kick off and gives the ball straight back to Parramatta. It's a penalty to the Eels for an accidental offside after Julia Robinson picked up the loose footy. 

11th min: And there it is - Hayley Maddick gets things underway in Brisbane with a try in the corner, set up nicely by Julia Robinson, who broke the initial line of defence before moving the ball wide to her winger. Possession in good ball territory came following a Martha Mataele error. The conversion attempt from Romy Teitzel is shanked and well wide. 4-0 to the hosts. 

10th min: On the back of 70 percent possession, which has been helped along by a bunch of early Eels errors, the Broncos are running hot right now and looking likely to open the scoring.

4th min: Big let off for the Eels early as Brisbane spill the ball while hot on the attack and a few metres out from the line, but seconds later they drop the ball while working it out of yardage. 

1st min: After a pre-match ceremony which included a Welcome to Country from Waveney Yasso, and Ali Brigginshaw being honoured ahead of her 50th NRLW game, we are underway in Brisbane. 

 

Late Mail

Broncos: Ali Brigginshaw will line up at halfback as she becomes the first player to play 50 NRLW games. A suspension to Brianna Clark has seen Keilee Joseph shift to prop, with Shalom Sauaso to start at lock. Tara McGrath-West's return from a foot injury remains at least another week away. No late changes for Scott Prince's side. 

Eels: Kennedy Cherrington (concussion) and Boss Kapua (leg) slot straight back into the starting side with Paige Travis and Ryvrr-Lee Alo shifting to the interchange. Mia Middleton (facial injury) and Yasmine Baker (knee) have both been listed in the reserves as they look to return from injury. They are 1-17 after the one-hour update. 

Numbers Game

• Broncos captain Ali Brigginshaw will become the first player to appear in 50 NRLW games.
• The Eels have won their last two games in Brisbane.
• The Broncos will play their 50th NRLW game.
• Eels lock Kennedy Cherrington has scored a try in her last two games against the Broncos.
• The Broncos have scored 102 points in their past three games.

 

Sharks v Titans at Sharks Stadium

Full-time: The Sharks get it done in a low-scoring grind against the Titans and emerge 12-8 winners to go fourth on the live ladder. The result means they are now 2-2 on home soil at Shark Park. Star fullback Emma Verran stood tall in the second half to score one of her side's tries and set up the other. The Gold Coast go down despite dominating many of the key stat categories, including run metres (1280 to 964) and tackle breaks (23 to 10). 

69th min: The Titans go high and short on the kick-off with their last throw of the dice, but Tiana Penitani Gray leaps high to collect it. That should be the game. 

68th min: Georgia Hale is penalised for late contact on a kicker, presenting Cronulla with a penalty in front of the posts. They opt to kick and Charntay Kiria-Ratu extends the lead to 12-8. 

67th min: The Sharks scoop up a Lauren Brown kick 10 off their own line and begin the process of getting out of their own end. Time is really against the Titans now. 

63rd min: The Sharks are back in front with seven to play. Chantay Kiria-Ratu converts and it's 10-8. 

62nd min: A penalty for a second effort next to the posts give Cronulla the chance to retake the lead. Chantay Kiria-Ratu, who is 0-2 off the tee today, will attempt the kick. 

61st min: Georgia Hannaway grubbers for herself from close range, but Ivana Lolesio arrives to defuse it. The Titans restart play with a dropout. 

60th min: Titans forward Laikha Clarke is off for a head injury assessment. 

58th min: Sharks forward Talei Holmes is pinged for a crusher-style tackle and the Titans opt to take the easy two points on offer. Lauren Brown converts and we are back to a tied ball game, 8-8. Holmes is also put on report for the incident. 

56th min: What was initially a good covering tackle from Tiana Penitani Gray ends up being a penalty for her making a second effort. Big chance for the Titans to hit the lead again here. 

51st min: The Sharks are in again after executing a set play off a scrum to perfection. Emma Verran turns provider this time, laying on the final pass for Cassie Staples to score in the corner. Chantay Kiria-Ratu is well wide on the conversion again, so it's 8-6 in favour of the home side. 

48th min: A hit back from the Sharks against the run of play. What started as a fairly innocuous hit up from Emma Verran just kept on going, with the star playmaker driving her legs through the tackle to eventually end up over the line for her sixth try of the season. The conversion is no good though, so the Titans keep the lead 6-4. 

45th min: The Titans are growing in confidence against the 12-woman Sharks right now. Metres down field are coming a bit easier for Karyn Murphy's crew. 

41st min: Finally a breakthrough! Lauren Brown opens the scoring after selling the defence on a dummy before darting through a gap to score from close range. The No.7 then converts her try for a 6-0 lead. 

38th min: Anne-Marie Kiria-Ratu has been binned and placed on report for a hip-drop tackle. Play was paused while Jasmine Solia was down with an ankle issue, with Kiria-Ratu sanctioned at the end of it. 

Half-time: A scoreless opening stanza on the Shire, with handling and discipline a huge issues for both sides. All up there's been a combined 11 errors and seven penalties conceded. 0-0. 

34th min: Caitlin Johnston-Green coughs up her second error since coming on. The returning forward has had some struggles in her first stint back in the NRLW. 

30th min: After back-to-back sets inside the opposition 20, the Titans hand the ball back over after Phoenix-Raine Hippi flings an offload to a Sharks player. 

28th min: Emma Verran arrives just in time to defuse a grubber from Taliah Fuimaono in-goal. The Sharks will drop the ball out. 

25th min: Titans wing Phoenix-Raine Hippi jams in from the wing and forces a mistake from Tiana Penitani Gray. It ends a promising attacking raid for the Sharks and the stalemate ensues. 

22nd min: Stephanie Faulkner goes on report for a dangerous tackle. 

21st min: Reports coming through the broadcast say Annessa Biddle has suffered a dislocated elbow. The representative player has been ruled out of the rest of the game. 

19th min: The Titans are enjoying most of the good-ball opportunities here, with 64 percent of the territory through the first 20. However, poor handling has meant they haven't been able to translate it into points so far. 

16th min: Concern here for Sharks centre Annessa Biddle who has been helped from the field nursing what looks like a shoulder or arm injury. Biddle was twisted awkwardly in a tackle involving Kiwi Ferns teammate Georgia Hale. 

15th min: A promising set for the Titans ends with a bad mistake from Lauren Brown on play five, with the playmaker fumbling the ball as she attempted to kick a few metres out from the tryline. 

10th min: Some sloppy errors creeping in early for both sides here. Through 10 minutes there have already been four penalties and three errors. 

8th min: After a knock on from Taliah Fuimaono on halfway, the Titans compound the issue by giving away a penalty for a strip a few tackles later. 

4th min: Back-to-back penalties have marched the Sharks down field and they now have the Titans camped on their own line. 

2nd min: Sharks veteran Tiana Penitani Gray goes on report for a hip-drop. The Titans go on the attack at Shark Park.

Late Mail

Sharks: Test and Origin prop Caitlan Johnston-Green makes her long-awaited Sharks debut against the Titans on Saturday after being cleared to complete a remarkable return following childbirth. Having complied with the rigorous NRLW pregnancy policy, Johnston-Green will join the interchange for the clash at Sharks Stadium after giving birth in May. Nakia Davis-Welsh makes way and drops back to be 18th player. Fittingly, Johnston – a proud Awabakal and Gomeroi woman – will return in the second week of Indigenous Round as the Sharks wear a special jersey. Captain Tiana Penitani Gray is back from a concussion that kept her out of last week's win over St George Illawarra, but hooker Quincy Dodd is out with an ankle injury.

Titans: Georgia Hale once again moves to hooker after being named to start at lock, while Laikha Clarke joins the run-on side from the bench, with Sienna Lofipo moving to lock and Lily-Rose Kolc back to the bench. An ankle injury to Jaime Chapman has seen Lailani Montgomery step into the fullback role, while Taliah Fuimaono replaces Pauline Piliae-Rasabale (hamstring) at five-eighth. Estanona Faitala-Mariner joins the bench, with Kelsey Parkin the replacement player. 

Numbers Game

• The Sharks have won only one of their past five games at Sharks Stadium.
• The Titans won their only previous game at Sharks Stadium (10-8 v Sharks in 2023).
• Sharks winger Georgia Ravics has scored seven tries in her last five games.
• The Titans have lost three from four without fullback Jaime Chapman.
• Hooker Quincy Dodd (ankle) will miss her first game for the Sharks.