FLY-half Martin Naufahu found his kicking boots just in time for Footscray to edge out Southern Districts 29-23 in a Victorian Rugby Union Premier 1 nail-biter.
Naufahu had a case of goalkicking yips, failing on all his conversion attempts. But he kicked straight when it mattered late in the game with his two penalties sealing a bonus-point win.
“When we really needed those points, he came back and kicked those important goals,” Bulldogs coach Junior Naufahu told the Weekly.
It was the Bulldogs’ third consecutive win after opening the season with back-to-back losses.
They are right back in the mix because each of their wins has come with a bonus point.
“We’re getting maximum points every win, so it’s helping us stay in contention for a top-five spot,” Naufahu said.
The Bulldogs are starting to produce a brand of rugby they can be proud of.
They are eliminating the errors that plagued them in the opening fortnight.
Their line outs are cleaner and they are more patient with the ball. The result is more points at the offensive end.
“There’s still quite a bit to work on, but it’s good to see positive signs that we’re improving,” Naufahu said.
“All the things that didn’t work out in the first two weeks, we’re slowly fixing. We’re not quite there yet, but we’re improving week by week.”
With time winding down and the scores locked at 23-all, the Bulldogs were unwavering in their pursuit of a late win.
They wore the Pirates down with repeat phases before forcing the referee to hand out penalties. From there, it was all on the boot of Naufahu, who made no mistake from two penalties.
“Our boys got stuck in and never gave up,’’ Naufahu said.
Isaac Lilo was the player of the match for the Bulldogs.
The right lock churned out the metres in attack and muscled up hard in defence.
Sione Naufahu was effective at cleaning up the line-outs, a problem area for the Dogs in the opening month.
The tryscorers were Allan Imo, Isaako Tuifeai, Tonu Filipo and Lui Seualuga.
The Bulldogs’ celebrations will be tempered by a huge clash with Melbourne Unicorns to come at Henry Turner Reserve on Saturday.
“This will show us where we stand in this competition,” Naufahu said.
“They’re one of the favourites to win it.”
