Tonegato leads St George Illawarra past Roosters in crucial NRLW clash

Nicknamed the Ferrari, Tonegato showed off her wheels in both attack and defence to help the Dragons prevail 16-10.

The win moves St George Illawarra two points clear of the Broncos, Brisbane to play their final game of the season against the Eels on Sunday.

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Brisbane would need to defeat Parramatta by 21 points to overtake the Dragons on the ladder.

Saturday's clash was a tense affair, St George Illawarra well below their best but grinding out a victory.

The Dragons now turn their focus to next Sunday's semi-final at Leichhardt Oval and coach Jamie Soward said his team has plenty of areas to work on throughout the week.

"We probably made it hard for ourselves at times," Soward said. "I'm pretty lucky we've got a pretty special group at the moment that just found a way.

"We've battled injuries and another concussion today early. The interchange I probably got wrong, which may have contributed to some fatigue off the back of those completions.

"For us it's on to next week. This is what we came to do, make the semi-finals, that preparation starts tonight."

Taliah Fuimaono stood up in halfback Rachael Pearson's absence, the five-eighth directing the team around the park and setting up two tries.

Fuimaono was good, but Tonegato was the star of the show.

The former rugby sevens star was superb throughout the contest, threatening every time she touched the ball and crossing for a crucial second-half try.

Her real impact came in defence, the 27-year-old making multiple try-saving tackles.

The third evoked memories of Scott Sattler's famous tackle in the 2003 NRL grand final, Tonegato chasing Jess Sergis and dragging her over the sideline just metres from the try line.

For Soward, it was one of the most impressive plays he's seen on a rugby league field.

"Everyone in rugby league, NRLW, just got their highlights for next year as why you should be playing rugby league.

"That was probably one of the best plays I've ever seen, men's or women's.

"She was outstanding today, Emma. It's going to cost us a fair bit to keep her for season two.

"She's the ultimate professional. That play there just typifies Emma and we're very lucky to have her."

Tonegato's tackle came at a pivotal moment in the half, the Roosters desperate to head to the sheds with points on the board.

Instead it was St George Illawarra who held on to a 4-0 lead at the break.

The first half was a tight, scrappy affair, both teams struggling to maintain possession.

St George Illawarra made seven errors in the opening 35 minutes, the Roosters five.

The turnovers made for plenty of attacking opportunities, however the two sides struggled to make the most of their chances.

Elsie Albert handed her side an early lead, the forward crashing over from close range in the seventh minute.

The Dragons turned the ball over in the ensuing set of six and the Roosters looked like levelling the scores on a number of occasions.

Centre Isabelle Kelly made the most of Jaime Chapman's early departure due to concussion, the Jillaroo threatening to break through with the ball in hand.

St George Illawarra were solid in defence, particularly on their own goal line and they did well to contain Kelly.

The Roosters did have a pair of tries denied by the bunker, once for obstruction and the second for a knock on.

The game opened up in the second half, Kody House and Tonegato crashing over inside the first six minutes to extend the lead to 12-0.

Just as it looked like the Dragons would pull away, the Roosters hit back through Sarah Togatuki to cut the gap to six.

Suddenly the momentum was with the visitors and they looked set to run over the top of their rivals.

The Roosters had plenty of chances to strike, however St George Illawarra held firm.

The game swung back in the Dragons favour when winger Madison Bartlett took an intercept and raced 65 metres to score.

Kelly eventually crossed in the final minute, however it was a case of too little too late for the Roosters.

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