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The Dolphins tightened their grip on a top-four spot on Friday night, outlasting the St George Illawarra Dragons 28-22 at WIN Stadium in Wollongong after a frantic finish threatened to undo an otherwise commanding performance. What looked comfortable with 10 minutes to play became anything but as the Dragons charged home, forcing Kristian Woolf’s side to earn every metre of the win.
With the race for the top four tightening, these are the games the Dolphins had to bank. They arrived in Wollongong as favourites against a side sitting outside the finals picture, and despite a few nervous moments late, left with the result they needed to keep their double-chance hopes firmly on track.
It was far from perfect. The Dolphins completed only 71 per cent of their sets and committed more errors than the Dragons, but they consistently rolled further downfield. They finished with 2,001 running metres, 629 post-contact metres and 266 kick-return metres, giving themselves better field position for most of the night.
Dolphins Take Control Before The Break
The visitors struck first when Connelly Lemuelu slipped a superb offload to Kodi Nikorima, who broke into space before sending Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow away for the opening try. Jamayne Isaako converted to make it 6-0 after five minutes.
The Dragons answered through Setu Tu before Tyrell Sloan continued his outstanding try-scoring run, finishing a slick left-edge movement to edge the home side in front.
The Dolphins responded immediately.
Selwyn Cobbo crossed after a sweeping movement to level the scores before the visitors produced their best attack of the half. Kurt Donoghoe surged into the backfield, Herbie Farnworth somehow freed his arms in heavy traffic, and Ray Stone crashed over beside the posts. Isaako converted for a 16-10 half-time lead.
Dolphins Answer Every Challenge
The second half settled into an arm wrestle before the Dolphins struck again.
Cobbo grabbed his second try in the 54th minute after another sharp left-edge shift before Isaako pushed the margin to 12 points.
The Dragons responded when Tyrell Sloan burst through and sent Clint Gutherson over to close the gap, but Thomas Flegler restored breathing space for the Dolphins with a powerful try near the posts. Isaako’s conversion made it 28-16 with just over 10 minutes remaining.
At 28-16 the game looked over.
Instead, the Dragons came again.
Ryan Couchman finished a sweeping late raid after breaks from Josh Kerr and Couchman himself punched holes through the Dolphins defence. Valentine Holmes converted to make it a six-point game and suddenly the home crowd sensed one last twist.
The Dragons forced field position, challenged a late decision and peppered the Dolphins’ line, but the visitors defended calmly through the closing sets before forcing the error that sealed the result.
The statistics reflected a contest that was much tighter than the ladder suggested. Possession was split 50-50 and the Dragons completed at 83 per cent, yet the Dolphins made their carries count. They broke 36 tackles, averaged more than 51 metres per set, restricted the Dragons to 87.7 per cent tackle efficiency and repeatedly won the yardage battle.
Cobbo’s double headlined the night, Tabuai-Fidow continued his prolific record against the Dragons, Ray Stone provided real spark off the bench and Isaako’s four goals from five attempts ensured the Dolphins converted their opportunities.
It wasn’t pretty, but it may prove one of the Dolphins’ more important wins of the season.
NRL Telstra Premiership – Round 22
St George Illawarra Dragons 22
(Setu Tu, Tyrell Sloan, Clinton Gutherson, Ryan Couchman tries; Valentine Holmes 3/4 goals)
Dolphins 28
(Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow, Selwyn Cobbo 2, Ray Stone, Thomas Flegler tries; Jamayne Isaako 4/5 goals)
Half-time: Dolphins 16-10
Date: Friday, 31 July 2026
Venue: WIN Stadium, Wollongong
Team Lists
St George Illawarra Dragons: Clinton Gutherson, Setu Tu, Valentine Holmes, Moses Suli, Tyrell Sloan, Lyhkan King-Togia, Kyle Flanagan, Loko Jnr Pasifiki Tonga, Damien Cook, Toby Couchman, Dylan Egan, Hamish Stewart, Ryan Couchman. Interchange: Daniel Atkinson, Jacob Liddle, Luciano Leilua, Josh Kerr, Jacob Halangahu, Emre Guler.
Dolphins: Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow, Jamayne Isaako, Jack Bostock, Herbie Farnworth, Selwyn Cobbo, Kodi Nikorima, Isaiya Katoa, Thomas Flegler, Jeremy Marshall-King, Francis Molo, Connelly Lemuelu, Kulikefu Finefeuiaki, Morgan Knowles. Interchange: Kurt Donoghoe, Max Plath, Tom Gilbert, Ray Stone, Bradley Schneider, Felise Kaufusi.
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