The Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs have suffered their sixth loss of the season, going down 32-12 to the Sydney Roosters at Allianz Stadium.
The Dogs – with the support of a boisterous crowd - got on the board first through Enari Tuala, who crossed off a cutout pass from Club captain Stephen Crichton.
But the Roosters hit back five minutes later when Sam Walker delivered a chip-kick on at a platter for Daniel Tupou to score in the corner. Walker added the extras to lock scores up 6-all.
The Roosters went into the half-time break with an eight-point lead thanks to a Walker penalty goal and a late try to Naufahu Whyte.
Cameron Ciraldo’s men rallied in the opening minutes of the second half and came up with a couple of impressive defensive efforts, but despite their spirit they couldn’t stop Whyte, who barged over for his second of the night.
The Roosters later extended their lead with Walker and Tupou combining once again.
The Bulldogs needed a big moment and with just under 20 minutes left on the clock, star five-eighth Matt Burton delivered exactly that when he intercepted a pass and ran 85 metres to score.
The thrilling try also took his total Bulldogs points to 502 – making him the sixth player in Club history to reach 500 and the first since the great Hazem El Masri.
While it sparked some momentum it wasn’t enough to overcome the Roosters with Tupou sealing the result in the final three minutes with his third try of the game.
Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 12 (Tuala, Burton tries; 2 goals) def by Sydney Roosters 32 (Daniel Tupou 3, Naufahu Whyte 2 tries; Sam Walker 6 goals)
