St George Illawarra has put some distance between itself and the game's most dreaded kitchen utensil with an 18-14 win over the Tigers in Wollongong on Thursday.
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The showdown was pitched as a 'Spoon Bowl' between the two bottom sides on the ladder, with one group of industrious fans illustrating as much in waving a jumbo version of the dreaded gong on the WIN Stadium hill.
St George last picked up the spoon in 1938, while Illawarra last finished bottom of the comp in 1989, 10 years before the creation of the joint venture that's yet to claim the ignominious distinction.
They looked to be inching closer when they trailed 14-12 at halftime, conceding two tries in the eight minutes before the break with Tyrell Sloan in the sin-bin.
It proved the final points the visitors could muster, with Mikaele Ravalawa's 64th minutes try courtesy of a Zac Lomax flick pass the lone four-pointer of the second stanza, and enough to get the Dragons home.
The Dragons now look all but certain to have resigned the competition's other joint-venture to a second straight wooden spoon in a match largely reflective of where both clubs presently sit on the ladder.
It doesn't amount to a complete bounce back, but there were some positives for the just over 7000 fans who braved the Thursday-night chill to watch their side get home.
He's Zac baby!
Maybe not quite, but Zac Lomax was unquestionably the star of a match that didn't reach any great heights.
The previously maligned 23-year-old had a try and 15 runs at the half, more than twice that of the next best Talatau Amone and Tyrell Sloan's seven carries each.
He finished with 29 runs for 188 metres and the round-the-corner flick pass that laid on the go-ahead try for Mikaele Ravalawa 14 minutes from time. It proved the match-winner, along with his perfect three from three with the boot.
The involvement doesn't reflect a bloke who - depending who you hear it from - either wants out of the club, or is on the outs with it. Shane Flanagan has said he intends to keep Lomax in Wollongong and, given he's ended up at fullback in his side's last two games, it could even give the incoming coach food for thought next preseason.
Lomax's previous dalliance with the No. 1 jumper came under Paul McGregor ahead of 2019 but was quickly aborted. Given the lack of competition Sloan has for the No. 1 jumper at present, it could be an idea Flanagan at least floats when he officially gets his feet under the desk.
Either way, Lomax certainly looks more than the shadow of himself he seemed at the back end of Anthony Griffin's tenure.
"It's always been there in, he's just enjoying his footy, he's enjoying doing his job and his role for the team again," coach Ryan Carr said.
"He had to go to fullback when had a man down and then he went back to right centre. He's got that brilliance in him but he's really reliable with his effort and his work rate for us, which has been pleasing.
"I'm not a massive stats man, I'm more about the effectiveness of them but that's just him. He just knows that the team's tired and they need help. He's elite fit and he just works himself to a standstill and you see him at the end of the game sitting there, it's just nice to be able to do it and sit there after a win tonight."
Never a dull moment with Tyrell Sloan
As is often the case when it comes to the enigmatic 21-year-old, Sloan's night was hit and miss. He was entitled to stop Junior Tupou one-on-one when the Tigers flyer posted the first try, and to catch a clever inside ball from Lomax that would have put him into the clear midway through the opening stanza.
He also ignited his side's attack, grabbing the opening try courtesy of a brilliant flick pass from Talatau Amone, but it was his sin-binning eight minutes before the break that almost proved the most costly.
Sloan was dispatched by Ben Cummins for lingering in a tackle 10 metres out from his own line, with the Tigers taking immediate advantage through Tupou's second try.
Sloan's absence also played a role in Api Koroisau's try moments before halftime, with Zac Lomax shifting to fullback and forcing Dan Russell to defend in the centres on the right edge the Tigers made a habit of exposing.
All up, the 10 minutes in sheds cost his side 10 points before holding the Tigers scoreless in the second half.
"[The sin-binning] was huge call is the context of the game when you look at because two quick tries got scored against us on an edge where our right centre (Lomax) was back at full back," Carr said.
"It had a huge bearing on the game. I'll have to look back at the actual decision and get some feedback on why he actually got sin-binned as opposed to a six to go.
"It just goes to show you again, people look at the end score and say scrappy game, but we went 10 minutes without a man and I think we finished with less possession than they did. The field position was probably against us.
"We haven't won a scrappy game like that in a long time here and for the players to feel what it feels like to go out and actually win on the back of not being perfect, because we weren't perfect, but it was just based on defence and effort.
"We spoke about at halftime and said if we can keep them to nil in the second half we felt like we could win, and we kept them to nil in the second half so it was a hug defensive performance."
What about Ben Hunt?
After a couple of lacklustre displays in clubland, the skipper's performance was always going to be heavily scrutinised. It will stay that way for the remaining six weeks of the season where he's tipped to continue agitating for a release.
While the drama showed up in his previous two outings, Hunt looked close to his old self early on Thursday night, running the ball on three of his first four touches and laying on Lomax's 23rd minute try.
He struggled for much impact through the opening stanza given his side had just 44 per cent of the footy and cut a frustrated figure through much of the second half as errors with and without the ball piled up.
The frustration was evidenced by an uncharacteristic scuffle with English firebrand John Bateman with 20 minutes to go, but the skipper at least looked far more engaged than he had in losses to the Warriors and Sharks.
Keeping him in Wollongong remains an uphill battle for Flanagan, but it doesn't seem quite as hopeless as it did a month ago. At the very least, a push for a release this season appears dead in the water.
It won't get easier from here.
Given the roller coaster 2023 has been, it's easy to think the end of the season is near. It is, but for a team limping to the finish, it's still a lengthy six weeks away.
With byes exhausted, the Dragons host Manly in Wollongong next weekend ahead of road clashes with the Eels and Rabbitohs.
They then face arguably the toughest double of their campaign in the Storm and Warriors before concluding their season against the Knights at Kogarah in the final round.
It's a tough stretch, with Thursday's win bringing some valuable breathing space in the spoon stakes as the season heads down the stretch. It wasn't their best win of the year, but it may prove the most consequential.
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Mitch Jennings
Sports writer. Sport is my passion, rugby league my first love.
Sports writer. Sport is my passion, rugby league my first love.
