Broncos’ Sailor eyes Staggs night out in Dolphins derby
Brisbane fullback Tristan Sailor has vowed to honour the benchmark of passion and commitment set by teammate Kotoni Staggs and play his part in knocking the Dolphins out of the NRL finals race.
“That would be awesome,” Sailor said ahead of “The Battle of Brisbane” on Saturday night at Suncorp Stadium.
Both teams are on 26 points, along with Newcastle and Canberra, and two points behind eighth-placed St George Illawarra with two rounds remaining. The loser of the derby will be all but out of finals contention.
The Broncos have won all three derby clashes with the Dolphins.
In the first derby clash last year, centre Staggs raced 100 metres in the 77th minute to secure an 18-12 win. Filled with emotion, he exclaimed “this is our home” to make a point.
Before the game, Dolphins CEO Terry Reader had said the Broncos were now “co-tenants” of Suncorp Stadium with their new team.
While technically true, the Broncos were at pains for most of the week leading into the game to make the point that it was still their spiritual home.
“It’s such a big rivalry for us,” Sailor said.
“For Tones (Staggs) to cement that meant a lot to the boys, and I think it has set a good rivalry for this year and years to come.
“After that first game I think Tones really laid the platform of what it’s all about. This week there’s that extra element of us both battling for the eight, so it’s an even bigger game and it’ll be great to see everyone at Suncorp.”
Sailor, filling in for the injured Reece Walsh, was one of Brisbane’s best in the comeback 30-24 win over Parramatta last week, in which he scored a 60m try and set up winger Selwyn Cobbo for a try with an astute cut-out pass.
The 26-year-old will leave the Broncos for St Helens at the end of the season, but before he does that he wants to help Brisbane make finals.
“That’s definitely our goal, and for me personally I’d love to be able to help the boys do that,” he said.
“We’re still a chance to win the last two games and hope results fall our way and then I think we can be a real (finals threat) if we play like we did that last 60 minutes (against Parramatta). That was Broncos footy.
“Obviously there’s even more added pressure with us being on the brink of sliding into the eight, so we’ve got to play consistently good for the rest of the year.”
Sailor has battled inconsistent form after ankle surgery, but now is back to his best.
“It was my first surgery for a big injury and the rehab of that was really good, but it’s still never right straight away,” he said.
“It’s good to get that agility and acceleration back, and with that comes the confidence to play how I can play.”
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