A utility man this season for the Brisbane Broncos, Tesi Niu has signed a one-year contract extension with the club.

Although he seems to have become the mainstay at fullback, Niu has impressed the club enough to be given an extra year.

Still only 18, Niu has also represented Tonga on the international stage.

A long-time development player, Niu is the sort of player the Broncos revere and want to keep.

“Tesi is a fine young man and really exciting player who has come through our elite development pathways,” said Broncos CEO Paul White.

“We have known him since he was a 12-year-old and he has always impressed us with his commitment and hard work.

“He displays the values and character we want here at the Broncos and we are really excited that he has chosen to stay with us as he develops his NRL career.”

Equally fond of Niu is under-pressure Broncos coach Anthony Seibold.

“Tesi has got a fantastic work ethic … he’s had to work very hard to get to where he is right now and he is always extremely diligent with his preparation,” said Seibold.

“The players and coaching staff are really fond of Tesi, he is a very polite and respectful young man with a great attitude- exactly the type of player we want at the Broncos”

Another round of NRL is upon us! Teams flying high, teams struggling, and yet all with something to play for.

Plenty of ins and outs, player reshuffles and more, as teams cope with injuries and suspensions.

But what surprises can we expect to see across the 16 NRL teams.

Here are the teams for round nine of the NRL Telstra Premiership:

North Queensland Cowboys v Sydney Roosters (#NRLCowboysRoosters); Queensland Country Bank, Stadium; Thursday, July 9. Kick-off: 7:50 pm. 

Cowboys: 1. Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow 2. Kyle Feldt 3. Connelly Lemuelu 4. Esan Marsters 5. Valentine Holmes 6. Scott Drinkwater 7. Jake Clifford 8. Josh McGuire 9. Reece Robson 10. Francis Molo 11. Shane Wright 12. Coen Hess 13. Jason Taumalolo (C).

Interchange: 14. Ben Hampton 15. Tom Gilbert 16. Peter Hola 17. Gavin Cooper.

Reserves: 18. Murray Taulagi 19. Reuben Cotter 20. Corey Jensen 21. Jake Granville.

Coach: Paul Green

Roosters: 1. James Tedesco 2. Ryan Hall 3. Josh Morris 4. Joseph Manu 5. Brett Morris 6. Luke Keary 7. Kyle Flanagan 8. Jared Waerea-Hargreaves 9. Jake Friend (C) 10. Siosiua Taukeiaho 11. Angus Crichton 12. Mitch Aubusson 13. Nat Butcher.

Interchange: 14. Lachlan Lam 15. Sitili Tupouniua 16. Poasa Faamausili 17. Lindsay Collins.

Reserves: 18. Daniel Fifita 19. Drew Hutchison 20. Freddy Lussick 21. Matt Ikuvalu.

Coach: Trent Robinson.

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Gold Coast Titans v New Zealand Warriors (#NRLTitansWarriors); Cbus Super Stadium, Robina; Friday, July 10. Kick-off: 6 pm.

Titans: 1. Corey Thompson 2. Anthony Don 3. Beau Fermor 4. Bryce Cartwright 5. Treymain Spry 6. Ashley Taylor 7. Jamal Fogarty 8. Moeaki Fotuaika 9. Erin Clark 10. Jaimin Jolifffe 11. Sam Stone 12. Keegan Hipgrave 13. Jai Arrow.

Interchange: 14. Tanah Boyd 15. Sam Lisone 16. Tyrone Peachey 17. Jarrod Wallace.

Reserves: 18. Jai Whitbread 19. Nathan Peats 20. Greg Leleisiuao 21. Tyrone Roberts.

Coach: Justin Holbrook.

Warriors: 1. Roger Tuivasa-Sheck (C) 2. David Fusitu’a 3. Patrick Herbert 4. Peta Hiku 5. Ken Maumalo 6. Chanel Harris-Tavita 7. Blake Green 8. Jamayne Taunoa-Brown 9. Wayde Egan 10. Adam Blair 11. Jack Murchie 12. Tohu Harris 13. Karl Lawton.

Interchange: 14. Agnatius Paasi 15. Jack Hetherington 16. Isaiah Papali’i 17. Jazz Tevaga.

Reserves: 18. Lachlan Burr 20. Gerard Beale 21. King Vuniyayawa 21. Adam Pompey.

Coach: Todd Payten.

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South Sydney Rabbitohs v Wests Tigers (#NRLSouthsTigers); Bankwest Stadium, Parramatta; Friday, July 8. Kick-off: 7:55 pm.

Rabbitohs: 1. Latrell Mitchell 2. Dane Gagai 3. Campbell Graham 4. James Roberts 5. Alex Johnston 6. Cody Walker 7. Adam Reynolds (C) 8. Tevita Tatola 9. Damien Cook 10. Thomas Burgess 11. Jaydn Su’A 12. Ethan Lowe 13. Cameron Murray.

Interchange: 14. Liam Knight 15. Bayley Sironen 16. Patrick Mago 17. Hame Sele.

Reserves: 18. Mark Nicholls 19. Steven Marsters 20. Troy Dargan 21. Corey Allan.

Coach: Wayne Bennett.

Tigers: 1. Adam Doueihi 2. David Nofoaluma 3. Michael Chee-Kam 4. Moses Mbye (C) 5. Tommy Talau 6. Josh Reynolds 7. Luke Brooks 8. Josh Aloiai 9. Harry Grant 10. Oliver Clark 11. Luke Garner 12. Luciano Leilua 13. Matt Eisenhuth.

Interchange: 14. Elijah Taylor 15. Thomas Mikaele 16. Sam McIntyre 17. Chris Lawrence.

Reserves: 18. Benji Marshall 19. Reece Hoffman 20. Billy Walters 21. Russell Packer.

Coach: Michael Maguire.

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Cronulla Sharks v Penrith Panthers (#NRLSharksPanthers); Netstrata Jubilee Stadium, Kogarah; Saturday, July 11. Kick-off: 3 pm. 

Sharks: 1. Josh Dugan 2. Sione Katoa 3. Bryson Goodwin 4. Jesse Ramien 5. Ronaldo Mulitalo 6. Shaun Johnson 7. Chad Townsend 8. Andrew Fifita 9. Blayke Brailey 10. Aaron Woods 11. Briton Nikora 12. Wade Graham (C) 13. Jack Williams.

Interchange: 14. Toby Rudolf 15. Braden Hamlin-Uele 16. Siosifa Talakai 17. Royce Hunt.

Reserves: 18. Scott Sorenson 19. Connor Tracey 20. William Kennedy 21. Nene Macdonald.

Coach: John Morris

Panthers: 1. Dylan Edward 2. Josh Mansour 3. Dean Whare 4. Stephen Crichton 5. Brent Naden 6. Jarome Luai 7. Nathan Cleary 8. James Tamou 9. Apisai Koroisau 10. James Fisher-Harris 11. Viliame Kikau 12. Liam Martin 13. Isaah Yeo (C).

Interchange: 14. Tyrone May 15. Zane Tetevano 16. Moses Leota 17. Billy Burns.

Reserves: 18. Mitch Kenny 19. Malakai Watene-Zelezniak 20. Spencer Leniu 21. Charlie Staines.

Coach: Ivan Cleary.

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Brisbane Broncos v Canterbury Bulldogs (#NRLBroncosBulldogs); Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane; Saturday, July 11. Kick-off: 5:30 pm.

Broncos: 1. Tesi Niu 2. Jamayne Isaako 3. Herbie Farnworth 4. Darius Boyd 5. Xavier Coates 6. Anthony Milford 7. Brodie Croft 8. Tevita Pangai Junior 9. Isaac Luke 10. Payne Haas 11. Alex Glenn 12. Corey Oates 13. Patrick Carrigan (C).

Interchange: 14. Tom Dearden 15. Thomas Flegler 16. Rhys Kennedy 17. Ben Te’o.

Reserves: 18. Cory Paix 19. Jamil Hopoate 20. Kotoni Staggs 21. Matthew Lodge.

Coach: Anthony Seibold.

Bulldogs: 1. Dallin Watene-Zelezniak 2. Nick Meaney 3. Reimis Smith 4. Marcelo Montoya 5. Christian Crichton 6. Kieran Foran 7. Brandon Wakeham 8. Aiden Tolman 9. Jeremy Marshall-King 10. Dylan Napa 11. Josh Jackson (C) 12. Raymond Faitala-Mariner 13. Luke Thompson.

Interchange: 14. Kerrod Holland 15. Dean Britt 16. Renouf To’Omaga 17. Sauaso Sue.

Reserves: 19. Ofahiki Ogden 20. Jack Cogger 21. Sione Katoa 22. Lachlan Lewis.

Coach: Dean Pay.

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Canberra Raiders v Melbourne Storm (#NRLRaidersStorm); GIO Stadium, Canberra; Saturday, July 11. Kick-off: 7:35 pm.

Raiders: 1. Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad 2. Nick Cotric 3. Jarrod Croker (C) 4. Michael Oldfield 5. Bailey Simonsson 6. Jack Wighton 7. George Williams 8. Josh Papalii 9. Josh Hodgson 10. Dunamis Lui 11. Hudson Young 12. Elliott Whitehead 13. Joseph Tapine.

Interchange: 14. Siliva Havili 15. Kai O’Donnell 16. Ryan Sutton 17. Jordan Rapana.

Reserves: 18. Tom Starling 19. Matt Frawley 20. Darby Medlyn 21. Curtis Scott.

Coach: Ricky Stuart.

Storm: 1. Ryan Papenhuyzen 2. Marion Seve 3. Justin Olam 4. Paul Momirovski 5. Josh Addo-Carr 6. Ryley Jacks 7. Jahrome Hughes 8. Jesse Bromwich 9. Cameron Smith (C) 10. Christian Welch 11. Felise Kaufusi 12. Kenny Bromwich 13. Dale Finucane.

Interchange: 14. Brandon Smith 15. Tino Faasuamaleaui 16. Tom Eisenhuth 17. Nelson Asofa-Solomona.

Reserves: 18. Darryn Schonig 19. Cameron Munster 20. Brenko Lee 21. Nicho Hynes.

Coach: Craig Bellamy.

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Newcastle Knights v Parramatta Eels (#NRLKnightsEels); McDonald Jones Stadium, Newcastle; Sunday, July 12. Kick-off: 4:05 pm. 

Knights: 1. Kalyn Ponga 2. Tex Hoy 3. Enari Tuala 4. Bradman Best 5. Hymel Hunt 6. Kurt Mann 7. Mitch Pearce (C) 8. David Klemmer 9. Andrew McCullough 10. Daniel Saifiti 11. Lachlan Fitzgibbon 12. Aidan Guerra 13. Herman Ese’ese.

Interchange: 14. Starford To’A 15. Jacob Saifiti 16. Pasami Saulo 17. Brodie Jones.

Reserves: 18. Tautau Moga 19. Josh King 20. Phoenix Crossland 21. Connor Watson.

Coach: Adam O’Brien

Eels: 1.  Clint Gutherson (C) 2. Maika Sivo 3. Michael Jennings 4. Waqa Blake 5. Blake Ferguson 6. Dylan Brown 7. Jai Field 8. Reagan Campbell-Gillard 9. Reed Mahoney 10. Junior Paulo 11. Shaun Lane 12. Ryan Matterson 13. Nathan Brown.

Interchange: 14. David Gower 15. Stefano Utoikamanu 16. Marata Niukore 17. Brad Takairangi.

Reserves: 18. Daniel Alvaro 19. George Jennings 20. Will Smith 21. Andrew Davey.

Coach: Brad Arthur.

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St George Illawarra Dragons v Manly Sea Eagles (#NRLDragonsManly); Netstrata Jubilee Stadium, Kogarah; Sunday, June 12. Kick-off: 6:30 pm.

Dragons: 1. Matthew Dufty 2. Jordan Pereira 3. Euan Aitken 4. Zac Lomax 5. Mikaele Ravalawa 6. Corey Norman 7. Adam Clune 8. Blake Lawrie 9. Ben Hunt 10. Paul Vaughan 11. Tyson Frizell 12. Tariq Sims 13. Cameron McInnes.

Interchange: 14. Trent Merrin 15. Josh Kerr 16. Tyrell Fuimaono 17. Jackson Ford.

Reserves: 18. Tim Lafai 19. Tristan Sailor 20. Jason Saab 21. Korbin Sims.

Coach: Paul McGregor.

Manly: 1. Reuben Garrick 2. Jorge Taufua 3. Brad Parker 4. Moses Suli 5. Tevita Funa 6. Lachlan Croker 7. Daly Cherry-Evans (C) 8. Taniela Paseka 9. Danny Levi 10. Martin Taupau 11. Joel Thompson 12. Curtis Sironen 13. Jake Trbojevic.

Interchange: 14. Cade Cust 15. Jack Gosiewski 16. Sean Keppie 17. Morgan Boyle.

Reserves: 18. Corey Waddell 19. Brendan Elliot 20. Abbas Miski 21. Haumole Olakau’atu.

Coach: Des Hasler.

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The Newcastle Knights won 14-12 in a tight, gritty game with some steely defence but was marred by some last second controversy, robbing Manly the chance to tie up the game.

Both sides had a lot to prove going into the game after both having their worst performance of the season last week.

Newcastle started off the stronger of the two and applied a lot of pressure for not much result.

The pendulum finally swung their way when the trusted Mitchell Pearce and Lachlan Fitzgibbon combination clicked.

Pearce put in a deft grubber that Fitzgibbon almost scored off and on replays it was clear he was obstructed in a strong try scoring opportunity.

Daly Cherry-Evans held his arm back enough to deny him getting the ball down but as the fullback was there for Manly it was a professional foul and not a penalty try.

Knights took the safe option and opted for the 2 points.

However, they made better use of the extra man and continued their onslaught with a few repeat sets.

Eventually Andrew McCullough got his first points in Newcastle colours with a trademark dummy-half try.

Knights were up 8-0 and the sin bin was starting to take its toll on Manly.

But Cherry-Evans more than made up for his brain snap by leading Manly to their first points.

He took control of the game and when they were eventually in the red zone he ran over for a brilliant individual try.

Newcastle had one more try in them for the half and on the stroke of halftime Pearce found Mann on the end of a nice chip kick in-field and scored their second try of the day.

The Knights finished the half with a respectable 14-6 lead and in the end they defended their way to victory in the second half with no more points in their attack for the day.

As such, it was all Manly in the second half. The possession and territory was all theirs but all they could get was 1 try.

Cherry-Evans again the man who put Cade Cust through with a brilliant pass under the posts.

The Knights had a lot go against them, losing Edrick Lee to a broken forearm then Sione Mata’utia to concussion and then Ponga to concussion in the last 15 mins.

But even through all that adversity, they held strong and won 14-12.

But in the last play of the game there was controversy as Manly made a break and Tevita Funa put in a kick into the Newcastle in-goal.

On the replay, you could see he was then pushed after putting in the kick and being denied any chance of chasing after the ball.

While he wouldn’t have made much difference, it was still a penalty but the bunker didn’t see it that way, not wanting to make that call to deny Newcastle the win.

It was no try and game over, which led to a few Manly players letting the referee know their thoughts.

As a result, Addin Fonua-Blake was sent off after the siren for a few misplaced, choice words.

The better team ultimately won but nonetheless it was a controversial finish.

NRL News Player of the Game

Daniel Saifiti – 3

David Klemmer -2

Daly Cherry-Evans – 1

The Penrith Panthers were able to grind out a hard-fought 19-12 win against a fired up Wests Tigers at Bankwest Stadium.

High shots from Luke Garner and BJ Leilua putting a dampener on a nail-biting game to finish up the match.

The Panthers had the opportunity to move up to second with a win, while the Tigers needed a win to guarantee another week in the top eight.

It would be the Panthers with the first blow.

Viliame Kikau landing a huge hit to force a Tigers error just 10 seconds in.

Nathan Cleary and Jarome Luai then combined to send Stephen Crichton over after just two minutes.

Cleary had his kicking boots on Saturday, sinking his first attempt for an early 6-0 lead.

The Tigers held on with some astute defense, despite the Panthers continuously attacking the goal line.

Matt Eisenhuth capitalized on the fortuitous scoreline for the Tigers, charging over from close range to score after 28 minutes.

A knock to Moses Mbye saw Adam Doueihi kicking, with the fullback sinking the first attempt to tie it at 6-6.

The Tigers piled on the pressure, with Reynolds forcing an error to scamper up field and put his side in great position.

Two plays later, a quick tap-on from Mbye sent Tommy Talau over for his third try in two weeks.

Doueihi missed his conversion attempt, with the score walking into half-time at 10-6.

It would be a repeat start for the Panthers in the second half, as a cheeky grubber kick saw Crichton dive over for his second try.

Cleary made no mistake, curling his attempt over the black dot to make it 12-10.

Twelve minutes later, a high shot from Api Koroisau on Luciano Leilua saw sparks fly.

Joey Leilua, rattled by his brother being taken off, sparked a bit of a shoving match with Koroisau as he tried to apologize.

That seemed to liven up the game, with both teams laying down some huge hits over the final twenty minutes.

Nathan Cleary kicked a field goal from 25 metres out to give Penrith a 13-12 lead with eight minutes left.

Api Koroisau then scampered through the Tigers defensive line to set up Dylan Edwards to finish the scoring for the Panthers.

Cleary finished his good night with the boot, converting for what was the 19-12 win.

The action was not done there though, with BJ Leilua sent to the sin bin for a dog shot on Dylan Edwards with two minutes left in the game.

Luke Garner then collected Edwards with the last play of the game, sparking an all in scrum that was put on report.

The win saw Penrith temporarily jump into second, with the Tigers sitting in eighth pending results this weekend.

Both teams are back at Bankwest next week, with the Tigers against the Rabbitohs while Penrith take on Cronulla.

Although Panthers coach Ivan Cleary was disappointed with certain incidents in the game, he did enjoy the physical contest.

“We want to play by the rules and I thought we handled ourselves in some fiery exchanges pretty well,” Cleary said.

“There were a couple of disappointing incidents but it was a tough game, both sides put a lot into it.”

Some costly errors by Leilua are not acceptable in Michael Maguire’s book and the Tigers coach said he will talk to his centre.

“He was emotional and he gave away penalties, you just can’t do that,” Maguire said.

“He is aware of it. He has been around long enough. He knows what he has to do. I will talk to Joey.”

NRL News Player of the Game 

3. Jarome Luai

2. Matt Eisenhuth

1. Stephen Crichton

The Brisbane Broncos nightmare continued after they fell to a sixth straight defeat, this time at the hands of the New Zealand Warriors.

It would be the men in maroon and gold who opened the scoring.

After a few repeat sets on the goal line, a simple overlap to the right side that opened up the Warriors.

Tesi Niu delivered the final pass to PNG international, Xavier Coates who crossed in the corner.

Jamayne Isaako hit the post so the score remained 4-0 to the Broncos.

The Warriors then had a few sets on the goal line and it looked like they had a great chance to score.

However, Coates intercepted it and ran 90 to get a double against the run of play.

Isaako converted this one to make the lead 10-0.

The Warriors would finally get on the board with 1 and a half minutes left in the half after a nice short side play.

Chanel Harris-Tavita threw a cutout ball to Gerard Beale who gave the last pass to Ken Maumalo.

Maumalo gave the Warriors their first points and Harris-Tavita converted to lower the deficit to 10-6 going into the half time break

The Warriors started fast in the second half to level the scores.

Agnatius Paasi crashed over under the posts to score the 4-pointer. Harris-Tavita converted to take the lead 12-10.

10 minutes later, the Broncos would strike back.

From 40 out, Anthony Milford put up a beautiful spiral bomb.

Peta Hiku let it bounce and it went into the in goal.

It bounced over the head of a defender into the grasp of Herbie Farnworth to score.

Isaako converted to make the lead 16-12.

A few minutes later, David Fusitu’a scored to strike back for the New Zealanders but the Broncos challenged the try.

An obstruction was ruled and the Broncos survived.

This would not last long though.

With 10 minutes left, Wayde Egan ran from dummy-half and managed to break through three defenders to score.

Harris-Tavita converted to take the lead 18-16.

A few minutes later, the Warriors would all but seal the game as they crosses for the 4th time this game.

On the last tackle, Maumalo dived over in the corner with a wonderful put down.

However,  Harris-Tavita missed the goal meaning the lead remained 22-16.

To finish off the game, with 1 minute left, Isaiah Papali’i crossed the stripe.

David Fusitu’a was given the final kick but he hooked it.

The score held 26-16 until the end of the game.

Warriors coach Todd Payten praised his side’s resolve but also new loan recruit Jack Hetherington.

“He just threw himself into the week as well, he wasn’t quiet or shy,” Payten said.

“I thought he added a lot of leg speed and a different body shape through the middle for us.

“He made me feel old because he’s the first player I’ve ever coached that I’ve played with his father.”

With the Broncos down in the dumps, veteran back-rower Alex Glenn has vowed to help lead the side out of their slump, as he showed emotion post-game.

“I just got overwhelmed out there,” Glenn said.

“Sometimes we cry, we get upset. It’s just been a couple of tough weeks.

“It just hurts because I know the effort that we’re putting into training every week.

It’s just little areas in our game, we’re lacking discipline. I just care for this club, care for this team so much.”

NRL News Player of the Game

3. Blake Green

2. Wayde Egan

1. Ken Maumalo

A five-try second half blitz proved the difference as the Cronulla Sharks defeated the Gold Coast Titans 40-10. 

The Titans had a number of last-minute changes which saw new recruit Corey Thompson move to the wing to cover Phillip Sami.

Tyrone Roberts returned from injury at fullback and rookie Beau Fermor start in place of Kevin Proctor.

A surprise choice in Bryce Cartwright was named in the centres over Brian Kelly.

The changes looked like they might have paid off early in the game when Thompson made a break down the left-wing, beating several Sharks players on the way to the try line.

But the bunker ruled that Tyrone Peachey knocked on in the lead-up and the try was overturned.

Five minutes later, Braden Hamlin-Uele opened the scoring for the Sharks.

Halfback Jamal Fogarty shot out of the line in an attempt to shutdown Matt Moylan, who threw a deft pass to put Hamlin-Uele in a position to bust over the line.

It wasn’t long until the Sharks were on the attack again after Roberts failed to stop a brilliant 40/20 from Blayke Brailey.

However, the Titans had a stroke of luck when a Shaun Johnson pass hit the deck.

Thompson scooped up the loose ball and ran the length of the field to score.

The terrible string of luck for Sharks fullback Moylan continued when he pulled up with what appeared to be another hamstring injury.

Moylan shuffled to the centres briefly, pushing Josh Dugan back to fullback.

It wasn’t long until Moylan succumbed and had to leave the field.

The Sharks recovered quickly hitting the lead again when Andrew Fifita scored off a Wade Graham offload.

The Sharks appeared to be getting on top but right before halftime, the Titans scored when Roberts and Cartwright combined to put Anthony Don over in the corner.

Ash Taylor missed the conversion, sending the Titans into the sheds trailing by 2.

The second half started perfectly for the Sharks who crossed over through Briton Nikora within minutes.

Nikora was set up by Johnson who put on a pass at the line reminiscence of their 2019 combination.

It was Johnson’s swift stepping which created the Sharks next try as well.

Johnson took on the line to beat two Titans defenders and offloaded for Brailey who busted through a tackle to score.

The flood gates opened when Chad Townsend was able to step back inside and run through untouched for an easy try.

Brailey then put interchange prop Royce Hunt over for his first ever NRL try.

The Sharks capped off the demolition with a try to Bryce Goodwin set up by a beautiful long ball from Townsend.

It will be back to the drawing board for the Titans who have a good chance of picking up their third win of the season against the Warriors next week.

The Sharks are beginning to build momentum with a third win in a row.

Moving forward, they won’t be helped by the injury to Moylan with a date with the Panthers around the corner.

Johnson’s experience and guile shone through and Sharks coach John Morris made sure to mention it.

“He is just starting to get the balance right, Shauny,” Morris said.

“He has worked so hard on his game and had a really solid pre-season so I was confident that he was going to have a good year.”

Despite the loss, Titans coach Justin Holbrook was ecstatic with the performance of rookie back-rower Beau Fermor.

“He was fantastic for us, Beau,” Holbrook said.

“Ideally, 60 minutes would have been perfect for him after he has only played one scrimmage game, last week, in the past 12 months.”

NRL News Player of the Game

3. Shaun Johnson

2. Blayke Brailey

1. Braden Hamlin-Uele