Farewells don't always go according to plan in the NRL - just ask Danny Buderus - but departing St George Illawarra duo Jason Ryles and Mark Gasnier gave their Wollongong fans something to treasure as they powered the Dragons to a 34-6 win over the New Zealand Warriors.

In what is in all likelihood was their final game at WIN Stadium, Ryles and Gasnier stood tallest to all but secure a finals berth with the commanding six-tries-to-one win while relegating the Warriors into a battle for their top eight lives.

Ryles laid on a try for Dean Young that broke the Warriors backs early in the second half, while Gasnier unleashed a deft offload and miraculous around the back flick to set up the final two four-pointers for Josh Morris and Jason Nightingale in the 28-point rout.

But for all the glitz and clever ball play, coach Nathan Brown pointed to two back-to-back tackles just before the Young try as the moment he knew his men were ready to make a mark in this year's competition.

The first came from Gasnier as he cut down a flying McKinnon with the Dragons holding on to a 16-6 halftime lead, before rookie forward Matt Prior crushed Simon Mannering millimetres from the line after the Kiwi international had ignored two support players on his outside to go himself.

"Little things like Gaz's tackle and Matt Prior, it just gives you a chance to hold where you are and then we score and it takes you to 22-6," Brown said.

"The difference between 16-12 and 22-6 is obviously a huge advantage because the scoreboard builds pressure more than anything else.

"That's what helps you get into a position to do well and win games.

"The good stuff that Gaz did, the pretty stuff, and Coops scored the nice try, that comes on the back of all that other stuff." Warriors coach Ivan Cleary admitted the Mannering stuff-up proved costly.

"We had a couple of really good chances early in the second half where we just couldn't finish them off," he said.

"Things kind of got worse from there.

"(There was just) too many mistakes. We became bumbling fools by the end of the game." Having waged a one man war against the hefty Warriors pack throughout the game, Ryles admitted he was on the brink of tears as he made his way around the ground on a farewell lap of honour.

"I'm probably the most unemotional bloke ever and I saw Mum and I couldn't really cuddle her because I was about to well up in tears," Ryles said.

"She's going to think I brushed her. I kind of gave her a half cuddle and kept walking and said 'I gotta go, I'm going to cry'.

"I never cry." While Gasnier and Ryles could return to WIN Stadium if the Dragons sneak up into fourth spot, the pair admitted they had treated like their last hurrah.

"It's not a sad day, it's happy, I was very appreciative of how the fans have been to me throughout my career down here," Gasnier said.

"Guys like myself and Jason, we've never been anything but the merger, so it's always been just the Dragons to us, we've always had two home grounds.

Brought to you by AAP © 2024 AAP