The Bulldogs have gotten on the board for their first win of the 2026 NRLW season with a solid 24-18 victory over the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks.
Celebrating the NRL's Women In League Round with a bang, the Blue and Whites secured the victory with a hat-trick to young winger Simina Lokotui in Co-Captain Tayla Preston's 40th NRLW match.
The Bulldogs made early inroads through the middle of the field, with Elizabeth MacGregor slicing through from the kick-return, and soon after she touched down after a pearler of a pass from Ash Quinlan.
Match: Bulldogs v Sharks
Round 3 -
home Team
Bulldogs
9th Position
away Team
Sharks
10th Position
Venue: Accor Stadium, Sydney
Lokotui Swoops and Scores!
Her opposite winger Simina Lokotui joined in as well, taking an intercept and running 60 metres to score, with Preston's conversion giving the Blue and Whites a 10-nil lead after twelve minutes.
Both sides traded errors before the Bulldogs touched down again, with Leilani Wilson spinning a crisp pass to put Lokotui over for her second.
Consecutive penalties saw the Sharks swarm downfield, but the Bulldogs' defence converged to force an error on the line. Unfortunately the ball was coughed up soon before the Sharks pounced on a loose pass to score.
An error on the line cruelled the Blue and Whites before a dropped ball from a high kick saw Cronulla touch down once more to close the gap to two with five minutes remaining in the half.
MacGregor Opens the Scoring
Andie Robinson took down a runaway Jada Taylor, before the defence forced a forward pass on the line from their opponents, with the scoreline at the break remaining 14-12.
A massive hit from Wilson and Ma'atuleio Fotu-Moala jolted the ball free from the Sharks on the first set of the second half, before the side forced back-to-back dropouts to pile on the pressure.
Robinson then threw a beautiful cutout to give Lokotui the first hat-trick of her career, with the young winger showing poise to catch the ball with her fingertips before crossing.
Lokotui Has a Hat-Trick!
The Bulldogs extended their lead to two converted tries with a charging Monica Tagoai bursting through to crash over with fifteen left on the clock.
Tagoai Crashes Over
The visitors crossed late to force a grandstand finish, however it was too little too late with victory secured for the Bulldogs, 24-18.
Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 24 (Simina Lokotui 3, Elizabeth MacGregor, Monica Tagoai tries; Tayla Preston 2 goals) def Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks 18 (Quincy Dodd, Cassie Staples, Jaydika Tafua tries; Chantay Kiria-Ratu 2, Georgia Hannaway goals; field goals)
