Walker gets Titans home over Roosters

Gold Coast winger Chris Walker made amends for two second-half clangers with a
controversial 79th minute try to help the Titans to a 24-20 get-out-of-jail NRL win
over the Sydney Roosters at Bluetongue Stadium on Saturday night.
Video referee Russell Smith ruled Walker had grounded the ball before taking out a
corner post as the Coast sneaked home against a determined Roosters side.
Earlier, Walker had come up with two knock-ons in his own 20m zone, the second
contributing to the first of Roosters winger Sisa Waqa's two tries.
A barnstorming try from Roosters local junior Tom Symonds seemed likely to get the
last-placed Roosters home after they came back from a 12-point halftime deficit to
hit the front 20-18.
It finished four tries each in front of a small crowd of 6,232 with Scott Prince's
four goals from four attempts the difference.
The Titans had led 18-6 at the break before the Roosters fought back with three
tries in the second half, eventually grabbing the lead in the 72nd minute through a
determined run from three-game rookie Symonds.
But they will be ruing not taking the chances they created after backing up their
strong effort against Manly last week.
The Roosters led 6-0 after just four minutes through a neat-stepping effort from
halfback Mitchell Pearce but a burst of three tries in the final 11 minutes of the
first half from the Titans gave the visitors their halftime buffer.
The Roosters fought back to 18-10 when winger Waqa dived on a Pearce grubber nine
minutes after the break and the game came alive, particularly when Titans
replacement Luke O'Dwyer leapt from dummy half to trade blows with Braith Anasta.
The fightback continued when Waqa's second was awarded by video referee Russell
Smith in the 62nd minute - despite a hint of a Jarryd Hayne-style foot on a blade of
grass of the touchline - and the Roosters trailed by four.
They then managed to get in front, only to be denied the upset win by Walker's late
try.