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League great Andrew Johns has ripped the “totally unacceptable” start the Bulldogs had in their eventual 42-6 flogging at the hands of the Knights.
The Bulldogs were strong in the opening sets, but a horror five-minute period sent them on the path to the eventual flogging.
First, Dane Gagai danced between defenders Viliame Kikau and Luke Thompson to score easily.
AS IT HAPPENED: NRL round 24 Sunday action
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Minutes later it was Tyson Gamble’s turn to run through the same gap with just as much ease.
“He would have scored that in touch footy – they didn’t get a hand laid on him,” Johns fumed in commentary for Nine.
“Ten minutes into a game at NRL level, that is totally unacceptable. To go through without a touch on you. Twice! Nothing. Disappointing.”
To compound matters, the Bulldogs were down to 11 men briefly not long after when Harrison Edwards was first sin binned for a professional foul, before Jacob Preston went for what Billy Slater described as a “textbook” hip drop tackle on Jackson Hastings.
Hastings was spotted in a moon boot after full-time with suspected syndesmosis and is facing a lengthy stint on the sidelines.
Gagai magic behind Knights opener
Coach Cameron Ciraldo said the loss came off the back of one of the best weeks of preparation he had seen from the side all year.
“I didn’t see that coming,” he told reporters.
“I thought our intensity at training (and) our level of commitment to our preparation was elite level this week.
“But that’s one week. To be a good team and win games, you have to do that week on week on week for long periods of time.”
“We’ve just found how to prepare like an elite NRL team should. If we keep preparing the way we did this week, the wins will come in the future.”
NRL Highlights: Knights v Bulldogs – Round 24
Ciraldo said it was during the period they were down to 11 men they played their best footy, despite conceding a try.
“I thought we showed some fight, we were down to 11 men and we actually defended with our most energy. We actually fought a bit more than what we had previously,” he said.
“But yeah, just not good enough defensively. Our principles weren’t strong enough.”
“We were a lot more disciplined (in the second half), but you just can’t win games when you complete at 60 per cent and lose penalty counts the way we did.”
The Knights will host the Rabbitohs next Sunday, while the Bulldogs head down the Hume to Canberra following that clash.
