Emma Pritchard

It wasn’t the result Wests Tigers or their fans were hoping for as the joint venture club collapsed badly in an embarrassing 40-6 loss to the Sydney Roosters at Campbelltown Stadium on March 21, but the efforts of Daine Laurie, who was playing his second NRL game at fullback for the beaten side, did not go unnoticed.

Backing up a near faultless performance against the Canberra Raiders in Round I of the 2021 NRL competition, the former Grafton Ghosts and Lower Clarence Magpies star again proved to be one of, if not the best, player on the losing team.

Proving effective under the high balls the Roosters playmakers constantly fired down his end of the field, and gaining valuable metres in an intense battle which saw the Wests Tigers struggle to get out of their own territory on several occasions, the 21-year-old bravely put his body on the line in his attempts to fire up his teammates as the Roosters relentless attack continued.

He finished the game with nine tackle breaks against his name, ran close to 200m and saved a potential Roosters try in the dying seconds of the first half, but his efforts failed to change the result as the 2005 Premiers lost their first two games of the season and slumped to near last on the NRL ladder.

Wests Tigers halfback Luke Brooks, who was playing his 150th NRL game, also had an afternoon to forget, with several misplaced kicks and three missed tackles.

With Wests Tigers coach Michael Maguire seething and threatening to axe several players after the despicable performance which saw the Roosters run in seven tries to one, the former Clarence Valley footballer is one of a small handful of players guaranteed to hold their place in the side when the team travels to McDonald Jones Stadium to take on the Newcastle Knights in Round 3 on March 28.

Image Credit: NRL Photos 

In Image: Daine Laurie