A Kurt Mann try in the dying seconds saw St George Illawarra end their Auckland Nines tournament with a win over the New Zealand Warriors.
Tournament hosts the Warriors had also already been eliminated after losing their two pool matches on Saturday without livewire half Shaun Johnson who was ruled out of the competition with a groin injury.
The Dragons also left out young stars Jai Field and Matt Dufty who were outstanding on Saturday despite St George Illawarra’s results.
Warriors youngster Ata Hingano gave the Warriors a 4-0 lead before new Dragons signing Nene Macdonald put St George Illawarra in front after benefiting from a great run and offload from Siliva Havili.
Tuimoala Lolohea restored New Zealand’s advantage after half-time when he re-gained his own grubber kick to score.
But the Dragons would not go away, with Levi Dodd leveling the score at 10-all with a try in the corner after a Macdonald break and Taane Milne offload.
St George Illawarra looked to have got their nose in front when Macdonald made a break and slid over the line to score, only for match officials to rule the winger had landed short of the line and lost possession before grounding the ball.
There are no video referees in the Auckland Nines but replays showed Macdonald had scored.
It did not matter in the end, with Mann ghosting through the Warriors line to score an impressive solo try to give the Dragons a win.
The Dragons host the Wests Tigers in a trial at Wollongong on Saturday before the Charity Shield against South Sydney.
St George Illawarra start their NRL season against Penrith at UOW Jubilee Oval, Kogarah on March 4.
