St George-Illawarra crushed Sydney Roosters 32-8 in Sunday's NRL Grand Final in Sydney.
Seventh Grand Final success for Bennett
St George-Illawarra crushed Sydney Roosters 32-8 in Sunday's NRL Grand Final in front of an 82,000 crowd at Sydney's Olympic Stadium.
The Roosters were on course to complete a remarkable transformation from wooden spoonists to champions inside 12 months under former Hull and Bradford boss Brian Smith, when they led 8-6 at half-time thanks to tries from Braith Anasta and Mitch Aubusson.
But the Dragons roared back in pouring rain with four unanswered second-half tries through Jason Nightingale (2), Dean Young and Nathan Fien to claim their first title since 1979.
The second-half surge saw Dragons coach Wayne Bennett maintain his perfect record in Grand Finals, having guided Brisbane Broncos to six wins out of six during his 21-year tenure in Queensland.
The Dragons will face Super League champions Wigan in the annual World Club Challenge next year.
The match between the champions of Europe and Australia has been pencilled in for Sunday, February 27, almost certainly at Wigan's DW Stadium, with confirmation likely later this week.
