The Brisbane Broncos have locked in a NRLW Grand Final spot after an impressive 14-4 victory over the Sydney Roosters at Allianz Stadium.
A victory for the Broncos would all but secure their grand final spot and they started the game strongly with plenty of possesion down the Roosters end of the field although they couldn't turn the dominance into points. The Roosters were able to swing momentum back their way off the back of a string of penalties and they thought they had the first try when Karina Brown chased through a kick and got to the ball first after confusing between Chelsea Baker and Julia Robinson at the back. The potential points were sent to the bunker on a live decision of try from referee Peter Gough however it was ruled that Brown had in fact knocked the ball on trying to ground it.
The game became an armwrestle and it wasn't until inside the final ten minutes that the Broncos were able to get on top of the Roosters and it came through captain Ali Brigginshaw who showed all her talent to draw the Roosters defence to the outside before a show and go opened up a gap and Brigginshaw got through to score. An unfortunate slip from Chelsea Baker as she took the conversion saw the ball shoot under the crossbar from right in front.
The Broncos continued to mount pressure as the penalty count evened up and they added a second try just before the break when Fotu-Moala charged onto an inside ball from the Broncos and scored an important try and following Baker's conversion the Broncos took a 10-0 lead into the break.
Errors were hurting the Roosters in the first half and they continued to hurt in the second half as any pressure they were able to mount would easily come off the Broncos. The Broncos added a third try in the 37th minute when a last tackle play from the Roosters went horribly wrong and gave the Broncos perfect field position inside the Roosters 30. The Broncos shifted the ball right and although it looked clunky the passing was good enough and Meg Ward scored out wide after an inside ball. Both sides had chances and came up with errors although the Roosters were able to finally get on the board in the dying minutes when Isabelle Kelly showed her strength and got through to score out wide and although it needed confirming by the bunker, the try was awarded and the Roosters were on the board.
In the end, the Roosters got one last chance with back to back penalties in the final seconds but a last tackle play couldn't come off and the Broncos took a 14-4 victory over the pre-season favourites. Next weekend, the Broncos will take on the Warriors at AAMI Park in Melbourne, whilst the Roosters will look to avoid the season winless when they take on the Dragons at Allianz Stadium.