The preliminary finalists are locked in after a dramatic weekend of NRL finals football. The Roosters produced a statement performance to eliminate Cronulla, while Newcastle’s remarkable rise from last year’s wooden spoon continued with a tense victory over the Warriors in Auckland. With the Dolphins and Panthers awaiting in the preliminary finals, the race to the 2026 NRL Grand Final is down to four teams.
Semi-Final (Finals Week 2)
Review
The Sydney Roosters and Newcastle Knights advanced to the preliminary finals. The Dolphins will play the Roosters at Suncorp Stadium on Friday night and Penrith will play the Knights at Accor Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
The Sydney Roosters rebounded from their qualifying final loss with a commanding win over Cronulla-Sutherland at Allianz Stadium.
The Sharks lost Nicho Hynes after he hit his head tackling Salesi Foketi in the lead-up to the Roosters’ first try. Hynes was ruled out for the rest of the game, with Niwhai Puru replacing him and playing 77 minutes. The Roosters led 18-10 at half-time and scored five more tries after the break, including a double to Mark Nawaqanitawase. Daly Cherry-Evans showed why the Roosters signed him for finals football, with a try and three try assists to end a four-game losing streak.
After two straight preliminary finals, Cronulla were favoured to be a genuine premiership contender in 2026. They had their last five regular season games against bottom nine teams and looked like finishing in the top four. But they lost four out of five (not helped by Braydon Trindall’s injury) to squander their double chance.
GAME BREAKER: Connor Watson’s try 11 minutes into the second half gave the Roosters a 24-10 lead. On the fifth tackle, the Roosters went right, with Nawaqanitawase flick passing inside to Robert Toia to keep the ball alive. The Roosters shifted the ball back in-field – through multiple sets of hands – for Watson to score.
Newcastle continued their fairytale run to the preliminary final after beating the New Zealand Warriors at Eden Park.
The Warriors suffered the same fate as Canberra last season (finishing top two and losing both their home finals), while the Knights have risen from the wooden spoon to their first preliminary final since 2013. Knights coach Justin Holbrook would now be a warm favourite to win Dally M Coach of the Year, with the Dolphins’ Kristian Woolf the other main contender.
This was an absorbing finals game in front of nearly 50,000 fans, with only two Six Agains and just four tries in total (a double to Leka Halasima). The Warriors were denied a chance to tie the scores in the final minute when a potential escort penalty against Tyson Frizell wasn’t awarded and the Warriors had run out of Captain’s Challenges. While the Warriors scored 728 points in the regular season, their attack abandoned them when they needed it the most, scoring just 26 points (and three tries) in the qualifying final and semi-final.
GAME BREAKER: While Halasima’s second try got the Warriors back in the game, the Knights held onto a two-point lead for the last 10 minutes.
- Canberra won their first ever NRLW finals game, beating the Wests Tigers 6-0 at Campbelltown Sports Stadium. Isabella Waterman scored the only try as the Raiders led 4-0 at half-time.
- Romy Teitzel scored a double as Brisbane beat Newcastle 40-16 at Totally Workwear Stadium.
- The Sydney Roosters play Canberra (Allianz Stadium) on Saturday night and the Gold Coast play Brisbane (Cbus Super Stadium) on Sunday afternoon, with the winners going to the NRLW Grand Final.
Results
Roosters vs Sharks
| Full Time Score | Sydney Roosters 46 – 10 Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks |
| Scorers | Sydney Roosters 46 (Tries: Lindsay Collins 1′, Daniel Tupou 10′, Daly Cherry-Evans 27′, Connor Watson 51′, Mark Nawaqanitawase 62′, Robert Toia 65′, James Tedesco 68′, Mark Nawaqanitawase 71′. Goals: Hugo Savala 3′, 12′, 29′, 52′, 64′, 67′, 73′) Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks 10 (Tries: Sione Katoa 21′, Ronaldo Mulitalo 23′. Goals: Braydon Trindall 25′) |
| Half-Time | Sydney Roosters 18 – 10 Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks |
| Date | Saturday, September 19 |
| Venue | Allianz Stadium |
| Players | Sydney Roosters: James Tedesco, Daniel Tupou, Billy Smith, Robert Toia, Mark Nawaqanitawase, Hugo Savala, Daly Cherry-Evans, Naufahu Whyte, Reece Robson, Lindsay Collins, Salesi Foketi, Siua Wong, Victor Radley, Connor Watson, Spencer Leniu, Nat Butcher, Angus Crichton. Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks: William Kennedy, Sione Katoa, KL Iro, Ronaldo Mulitalo, Braydon Trindall, Nicho Hynes, Addin Fonua-Blake, Blayke Brailey, Jesse Colquhoun, Briton Nikora, Teig Wilton, Cameron McInnes, Mawene Hiroti, Siosifa Talakai, Billy Burns, Thomas Hazelton, Niwhai Puru. |
Warriors vs Knights
| Full Time | New Zealand Warriors 10 – 12 Newcastle Knights |
| Scorers | New Zealand Warriors 10 (Tries: Leka Halasima 12′, Leka Halasima 69′. Goals: Taine Tuaupiki 14′) Newcastle Knights 12 (Tries: Fletcher Sharpe 28′, Dominic Young 44′. Goals: Sandon Smith 30′, Sandon Smith 46′) |
| Half-Time | New Zealand Warriors 6 – 6 Newcastle Knights |
| Date | Sunday, September 20 |
| Venue | Eden Park |
| Players | New Zealand Warriors: Taine Tuaupiki, Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad, Ali Leiataua, Chanel Harris-Tavita, Te Maire Martin, James Fisher-Harris, Wayde Egan, Mitchell Barnett, Kurt Capewell, Jacob Laban, Erin Clark, Leka Halasima, Dallin Watene-Zelezniak, Alofiana Khan-Pereira, Tanner Stowers-Smith, Demitric Vaimauga, Eddie Ieremia-Toeava Newcastle Knights: Kalyn Ponga, Dominic Young, Dane Gagai, Bradman Best, Greg Marzhew, Fletcher Sharpe, Sandon Smith, Tyson Frizell, Phoenix Crossland, Cody Hopwood, Jermaine McEwen, Francis Manuleleua, Mat Croker, Harrison Graham, Lachlan Crouch, Pasami Saulo, Dylan Lucas |
