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 Tryscorer Darius won't go dackless 

Tryscorer Darius won't go dackless

There were two things I really liked in the Dragons 29-4 thumping of the Warriors across the ditch.

Firstly, it saw fullback Darius Boyd get his first four-pointer for the Dragons. While he'd publicly claimed he wasn't fazed by his tryscoring duck egg this year, the look on his face as he crossed the line on Sunday told a very different story.

His expression was a mix of happiness and relief, no doubt because it means he will no longer have to take part in the nudie run - the (perhaps mythical) ritual humiliation for those who don't score a try.

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    Of the regular first graders, it's just Dean Young, Dan Hunt, Luke Priddis and Mathew Head who still have to worry about dropping their dacks at the end of the season.

    Boyd's team-mates were happy to see him keep his pants on too. A trailing Ben Hornby was pumping a fist in celebration when Boyd was more than 10m from the tryline and it seemed the entire team raced into the ingoal to congratulate Boyd.

    Perhaps the only people unhappy with Boyd's try are those female Dragons fans saddened by the realisation that it meant there will be no dackless Darius at the end of the season.

    The other thing I liked about the game was the rather average handling from the Dragons in the second half. That was a plus for two reasons. Firstly it highlighted how good the Dragons defence was. Every time we coughed up the ball, it was as though the players went "okay, we made a mistake. Lets make up for it in defence". That's a big change from previous seasons where a mistake would often cause the Dragons to drop their bundle for the next five or so minutes.

    The other reason I'm so positive about the dodgy second-half handling is that it gives Wayne Bennett something to drill the team about this week ahead of Friday's clash with the Storm.

    Had the Dragons put in a really clinical display against the Warriors they could have headed to Jubilee Oval on Friday a little too cocky for their own good. But that drop-ball in the second half lets St Benny bring them down to earth a bit, point out that, perhaps, they're not quite as good as they might think they are and get some focus

  • And focus is just what they need when going up against the Storm. Sure, the Storm aren't exactly the same side that once struck fear into the competition for the last few years. And yes, we're five points ahead of them on the ladder. And I know they had to go into extra time to beat us at Olympic Park in round one this year.

    But the Storm are quite a bogey side for the Dragons. Obviously there's the big games - the 1999 grand final and the 2000 70-10 flogging - that weigh heavily in the psyche (of the fan if not also the players).

    But the overall record against the Storm is pretty shocking - of the 22 times we've played them, we've won just five times.

    In the last 10 match-ups, we've won just once. And that was a game when the Storm were missing 11 million players due to State of Origin.

    So if ever there's a game we need to be switched on for it's this one. If we can do away with a bogey team like the Storm that would further prove we're a special side this year.

    And it'd really, really make my day to see the Dragons knock off Melbourne.

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    Date: Newest first | Oldest first
    Since when has there been a nudie run by players at the end of the year?????? I'm happy Darius scored a try but on the other hand......I would have watched that nudie run.....slightly disappointed.....
    Posted by Nicole, 2/08/2009 3:46:20 PM, on Illawarra Mercury
    Try Hard
    Glen Humphries has been a Dragons fan since 1976. Come with him as he follows the team through the 2012 season.
    Darius Boyd. Picture: KEN ROBERTSON
    Darius Boyd. Picture: KEN ROBERTSON
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