#Phins Up: Must-Win Game at Roosters for Push to Top 4

Two games to go, both away from home, and the stakes could hardly be higher for the Dolphins. A win over the Roosters in Sydney would strengthen their grip on a top-four finish, while getting through the trip healthy takes on added importance with the first finals series in club history looming and growing belief that this side can make a serious premiership run.

The Dolphins head to Allianz Stadium in Sydney on Saturday, 29 August, sitting fourth, one place behind the Roosters, in a Round 26 clash that shapes as an early taste of September football.

Kristian Woolf’s side has already secured its maiden finals appearance after narrowly missing out in its first three NRL seasons. A top-four finish and the double chance are now within reach, but the regular season ends with two matches away from home.

The first is against a Roosters side looking for a response after a shock 25-24 loss to Wests Tigers snapped an eight-game winning streak and dropped Sydney to third.

No Room for Another Slow Start

The Dolphins arrive after beating Parramatta 34-16, but the final margin hid another sluggish opening. They also fell 24-0 behind Brisbane in Round 23 before producing a remarkable comeback.

Against a Roosters side with its own top-four position to protect, another early deficit could be much harder to retrieve.

There is plenty of evidence that the Dolphins can trouble Sydney. They thrashed the Roosters 48-10 at Suncorp Stadium in Round 15 and have won all three matches they have played in Sydney this season, although Sydney has won four of the past five meetings between the clubs.

Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow, Herbie Farnworth, Selwyn Cobbo and Jamayne Isaako give the Dolphins strike across the backline, while Isaiya Katoa’s emergence at halfback has been a major part of their rise from expansion club to finals contender.

Pouniu Stays as Donoghoe Returns

Woolf has kept Brian Pouniu in the 17 after the 18-year-old Redcliffe junior played 80 minutes against Parramatta in just his second NRL appearance.

Max Plath has been named to return to the second row, while Kurt Donoghoe has joined the 19-man squad following a thumb injury. Connelly Lemuelu remains sidelined with a hamstring injury and is targeting the opening week of the finals.

Sydney, meanwhile, has named captain James Tedesco to return at fullback after missing three matches with an ankle injury. Victor Radley is out following a head knock, with Nat Butcher moving to lock.

The Dolphins are already assured of playing finals football for the first time. What they do over the next two away games will go a long way towards determining the position from which they enter September, and a win over the third-placed Roosters would strengthen their claim to a top-four finish.

Published 28-August-2026