Bulldogs Wrap Up their Inaugural Season

It was the perfect start for the pack, with an early penalty putting the Bulldogs on the front foot. Tayla Preston forced a line drop-out before Ash Quinlan delivered a pinpoint pass for Elizabeth MacGregor to score in the corner. The conversion went wide, but Canterbury had the first points on the board, 0-4.

The Bulldogs kept the pressure on with repeat sets, but a successful Eels Captain’s Challenge swung momentum, gifting the home side possession. Parramatta made the most of it, shifting left for Kiana Takairangi to cross and lock things up at 4-all.

Canterbury almost struck back when Andie Robinson came within inches of grounding the ball, but desperate defence kept her out. Minutes later, Quinlan and MacGregor combined again, with the winger bagging her second try and restoring the lead, 4-8. It marked MacGregor’s seventh try in just eight NRLW matches.

The contest continued in an end-to-end fashion. Parramatta responded through Fleur Ginn to level at 8-all before Abbi Church leapt onto a Rachael Pearson bomb to give the Eels a 14-8 lead heading into halftime.

The Bulldogs came out strong again after the break, with Preston’s clever 40-30 kick setting up pressure. Despite multiple efforts resulting in the Bulldogs being held up over the line, Parramatta struck first through Elsie Albert to extend their lead, 20-8.

Fullback Andie Robinson kept Canterbury in the contest with a brilliant solo effort, slicing through the line and wrongfooting Church to score, cutting the margin to 20-14. But Parramatta’s experience began to tell, with further tries to Church, Pearson, Rueben Cherrington, Martha Mataele and Kiana Takairangi sealing the result, 46-14.

Despite the scoreline, the Bulldogs showed resilience right to the final whistle. Their teamwork, energy, and refusal to back down were clear, capping off a historic first season that has laid strong foundations for the Club’s future in the NRLW.