Lomax haunts Dragons with golden point dagger in Eels thriller

Zac Lomax shattered his former club’s hopes and delivered Jason Ryles his first win as an NRL head coach with a golden point field goal that lifted Parramatta to a dramatic 23-22 victory over the Dragons on Saturday afternoon.

In front of 19,302 fans at CommBank Stadium, Lomax nailed the match-winner three minutes into extra time, capping off a performance full of intent and impact in his first meeting against the Red V since switching clubs.

Trailing 20-8 early in the second half, the Eels rallied behind standout fullback Isaiah Iongi, who scored a try, set up another, and ran for 200 metres in a dynamic display that justified Ryles’ bold call to move on from Clint Gutherson in the off-season.

NRL Round 5 Highlights: Eels v Dragons

But Gutherson — playing against the Eels for the first time — nearly had the last laugh.

He scored two tries, assisted another, and played with trademark energy to put the Dragons in control for much of the contest.

A hostile Parramatta crowd greeted him with boos, but he looked up for the battle.

In a see-sawing second half, tries to Iongi and back-rower Kitione Kautoga levelled the scores before a controversial penalty gave the Dragons the lead.

That was quickly erased when Lomax coolly slotted a 43-metre penalty goal to send the game into golden point.

Then came the moment.

With time ticking down, Lomax stepped up from 25 metres out and iced the win with a perfect one-pointer to claim their first win of the season, with the top NRL bookmakers having them as the $2.40 outsiders.

It was also sweet vindication for Ryles, who stuck by Iongi and reshuffled his backline all week.

“It’s just relief,” he said post-match.

“We’ve worked really hard. Zac’s done that plenty of times at training, and it was his moment today.”

The loss stung for the Dragons, who once again blew a 12-point lead — as they did against South Sydney in Round 3.

Coach Shane Flanagan lamented his side’s execution in key moments, while Gutherson’s heroics proved not enough.

The Eels finally cracked their first win of 2025 NRL season — and with Lomax’s golden boot, the sweet sound of the team song rang out at CommBank for the first time this season.

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