Dare to dream: Jake sizzles as Phins' finals flame burns bright

Jake Averillo is happy to continue playing the "Mr Fix-it" as the Dolphins fight for an historic finals berth amid a lengthy injury toll.

Averillo playing his third position in as many games as the Dolphins kept their season alive with a vital and dominant 43-24 win over the Cowboys at Suncorp Stadium on Thursday night.

Entrusted to partner with halfback and stand-in captain Isaiya Katoa as the 'Phins looked to bounce back from a loss to the Sharks, Averillo delivered by scoring two tries and running 197m in possession with some blistering bursts of speed.

“I played my juniors at five-eighth, so it sort of comes a bit more naturally; but I just like to play to my strengths wherever I am playing and it seems to be working well,” Averillo said of his confidence to step into five-eighth, after playing centre and fullback in the past few weeks.

“Everyone loves attacking and scoring points, so it's been really fun this year.

“Having Issy [Katoa] there, creates a lot of space on the outside and makes my job really easy.

“I think it just comes down to the group we have, the coaching staff as well, they keep it really simple for me and have a lot of faith in me which is really good.”

While injuries have hit the Dolphins team hard again this year, especially in the forwards, Averillo’s confidence to play six has helped ease some of the concerns felt when Kodi Nikorima was ruled out until Round 23 at the earliest with a hamstring injury.

For Katoa, playing alongside Averillo felt “comfortable” with the two establishing a connection during pre-season.

“It definitely felt comfortable,” Katoa said.

“Over the pre-season, Jake trained a fair bit at six as well, so it wasn't like a new combination that we haven't ever tried before.

“We did train throughout the pre-season, obviously with Jack [Bostock] going down at the start of the year, Jake moved into the centres there.

“He's been awesome, just the way that he plays with his eyes, the confidence he has in the back of his running game, and the space that he can create for guys like Hammer [Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow] and Herbie [Farnworth] on the outside and like you saw tonight with Conns [Connelly Lemuelu] too.”

The win has momentarily lifted the team back into the top eight, a good step towards the side fulfilling a long-term aim this season to play finals for the first time in the club’s history. If they were to play post-season football, it would be a remarkable achievement, given their 0-4 start to the season.

“It would be a good achievement,” Averillo said. “It's cliche, but we have got to take it week-by-week.

“I think you can't afford to lose too many games in a row, especially with how tight the competition is. Just got to keep stacking those wins.

“We had a lot of boys out again and a few boys had to step up there again and we showed a lot of character to seal the deal and a lot of resilience.”

The Dolphins have a bye next weekend before getting back into the action in Round 22 with a trip to New Zealand to face the Warriors.