Women’s rugby, Colts 1 round 2 latest
Giant-killers strike again: Here’s the latest on women’s rugby and colts 1 action from Saturday, including two southside giant-killing efforts and our Super Eight players of the round.
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Sunnybank Dragons women struck for a second time this season, beating Brothers 43-5 at Biggs Field, while Colts 1 giant-killers Souths also claimed a big scalp.
The Magpies made it two wins from two in colts 1, upsetting arch rivals University with a 21-12 victory, while Brothers fought off an improved Sunnybank and Wests pipped Norths.
On the Gold Coast, the Easts Tigers roared to a win over Bond, 8-3, in a dogged affair.
OUR SUPER EIGHT from colts 1 and women’s action this week are
Te Moana Beale (Wests colts)
Charlie Stack (Brothers colts)
Ana Afuie (Sunnybank women)
Gus Godwin (Easts)
Hadassah Todd (Brothers women)
Saxon Warwick (Souths)
Tiarrie-Lee Fanuatanu (Wests women)
Michelle Curry (Wests women)
Hana Lane (Wests women)
In women’s rugby, Leilani Koroi, Joana Rabaka and Ana Afuie were outstanding in the win by Sunnybank’s women, with blindside flanker Rabaka helping move the ball through channels to score the Dragons’ second after Koroi had opened the match with an early try.
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There was great lead up work in the ruck which then led to loosehead prop Caitlin Barrie crashing over for Sunnybank’s third, making it 21-0.
Brothers put their first points on the board, before a sniping run from halfback Ana Afuie at the base of the ruck earned Sunnybank another try under their belt.
A run from Maddy Iva ignited a break by Dragons fullback Kanua Pula, who then offloaded to halfback Afuie for her second try of the day.
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Sunnybank’s assistant coach Sione Helu said the next few weeks of bye rounds would give his side time to work on set plays before they come up against last year’s premiers Bond University.
“We need to lift our game to compete with them,” he said.
“Today we left about 20 points out on the field.
“We’re definitely happy, but we could have done better.”
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Brothers women’s coach Tony Wall said there were many bright sports, including an exciting debut from Hadassah Todd whose strong defence was coupled with creating a try.
Becky Davidson also shone for Brothers and there were continued good performances by Grace Sullivan and Mabel Johnson.
In colts 1 action at Biggs Field, Brothers turned a narrow 12-3 advantage into a 38-3 point win.
Although the scoreline did not indicate how competitive the Dragons were, it was an excellent start for Brothers.
Initially Sunnybank seized the first points from a penalty to take a 3-0 lead, but missed tackles allowed Brothers to score their first points with a spectacular try out wide.
Desperate defence from Sunnybank’s No. 6 Ravuama Veutanavanua prevented another Brothers try and it was anyone’s match into the second half.
Brothers head coach Greg Beaver said it was good to start the season with a win after a bye in round one.
“Sunnybank are a different animal this year. They were really competitive and tested us in that first half,” he praised.
After the Easter break, Brothers will return with their first home game and a new focus.
“There’s a few areas to tidy up around our kick off and attack breakdown,” Beaver said.
It was a game of inches early on, with the odd poor kick from Sunnybank eroding the team’s push for an upset.
The Dragons also lost their scrum half with a head knock, and then Brothers piled on 14 quick points.
Brothers No. 8 Charlie Stack impressed across the match, while Sunnybank’s Fehi Mehina was mighty again for the Dragons.
“The score definitely did not reflect the game,’’ said Dragons coach Brendan Underwood.
“We should have been ahead at halftime and again a couple of moments in the game made us defend more instead of attacking in their half.’’
“Brothers came home strongly and went away in the final 15 minutes.’’
Underwood said it was imperative the group worked on its kick-chase.
And in Women’s action at Norths Rugby Club, the West Bulldogs catapulted out to a 43-0 first half lead to eventually claim a sensational 84-0 win over the Eagles.
The visitors ran in a stunning seven tries in the first 35 minutes, before replicating the dose in the second half where they added 41 more.
It was a display of firepower, chemistry and x-factor in both the forward pack and backline.
Queensland Reds flanker Hana Lane was busy as ever, while centres Tiarrie-Lee Fanuatanu and Michelle Curry were unstoppable.
Curry was a five try hero, the No.13 toying with the opposition defence every time she had ball in hand.
Curry has come over from New Zealand, having arrived two weeks ago just in time for round 1.
According to assistant coach Andrew Curtain, Curry, who moved to Australia to give herself an opportunity, was a class act.
“She’s definitely a good player. Her ball carry and defence are her hitzones. Her weapons.
“Once she gets the catch-pass polish she’ll be a complete package. We’re very happy to have her this year.
Fanuatanu, who played prop but looked like a centre out there, also shone like a beacon.
“She’s come down from Sunshine Coast, She’s 19 and came down as a second rower.
“She played for the Queensland Country, and we are working to transfer her into a tight head prop.
“We think for her future she could go Queensland Reds or Wallaroos if she puts it all together as a prop.
“Prop because her scrummaging work is great and it’s a point of difference at the next level, she’d be a six foot, 100kg female prop who can really run the ball.
“It’s something that gives Queensland a point of difference. Her post contact ability and looking for the offload is great. And she’s got aggression in defence,” Curtain said about one of many exciting Wests prospects.
He also had high praise for scrumhalf Jessica Craig.
“Craig came off the bench and you can see whenever she’s on there’s an energy boost. She’s what you want out of a halfback.”
The West’s try scorers were:
+ Eloise Schlecht
+ Ayla Cook
+ Leila Wood
+ Michelle Curry x 5
+ Hana Lane
+ Dillyn Blackburn (who has also come across from New Zealand) x 2
+ Tiarrie-Lee Fanuatanu x2
+ Dani Martens
+ Finao Mikaio
In the Colts 1 clash that followed, Wests flanker Te Moana was outstanding as the Bulldogs escaped an inspired 14-man Norths outfit to come away 24-17 winners.
After Nudgee College Old Boy hooker Will Rogers saw red five minutes in, Norths were down a man—but you wouldn’t have noticed it.
The Eagles fought hard until the final whistle, the second half proving a real arm wrestle between two sides chasing their first win of the season.
Representative fullback Will McCulloch and fly half Jack Hussey impressed for Norths, as did scrumhalf Kaleb Sturgess who offered crisp delivery from the ruck.
Assistant coach George Maloney said Hussey and McCulloch were exciting, saying “they’ve got bright futures. “I am looking forward to seeing how they develop throughout the year.
“Sturgess was solid and did his job creating quick pill.”
For Wests, getting the result was the most important thing, being a really young side with just two third year colts players, and 12 first year players.
Head coach Roscoe Deacon kept it honest saying he wasn’t happy with the performance, starting off well before taking their foot off the gas.
“I am glad we hung on in the end, happy with that. This team when it clicks we know what we can do. There’s a lot of talent, and we can look really good and play well.
“It’s just that concentration and effort. It’s a young group, and it’s a good confidence booster.
“Our last two games our blindside flanker Te was great. And Tre Sully off the bench was exceptional. Both the boys’ work rate, energy and physicality was great.
Dimitri Horton scored for Norths, whileback Mikaire O’Neill dazzled with a terrific try, joining wingers Harry Logan and Mathew Schoutrop on the scoring sheet.
Maloney said: “We’re absolutely happy with how it played out. Proud of their effort in terms of 14-men.
“To lose by five we are happy. We carried more than we did last week and we had that confidence.
“There was a big improvement from last week. We stepped up. We wanted the win but it is what it is.
Head coach Tom Donnell also joined in saying the heart from his side was excellent.
“They showed a lot of courage, they stayed positive. We really improved this week. The attack is slowly coming, but it was just the effort which was outstanding.”
Easts scored their second win of the season in a low-scoring 8-3 victory over home side Bond University.
Inside centre Jarrod Homan was the lone tryscorer of the game, with Easts’ defence unrivalled in their gritty five point win.
Indeed coach Tyrell Barker was happy with the way his side held strong not letting in a single try.
He said the work rate and effort from his boys was brilliant, while the scrum was working wonders.
Front rowers Kaileb Crothers and Nick Bloomfield were standouts, while winger Gus Godwin dazzled down the left edge.
And at Souths, the Magpies overcame the reigning premiers University 21-12 in an exciting win for the club.
Hooker Harry Holt, prop Saxon Warwick and winger Denzil Perkins crossed for the home side while lock Will Robinson and prop Harrison Swane scored for University.
It is the second week in a row that Perkins has lit up Chipsy Wood Oval, while Warwick was also a cornerstone of their round 1 success.
Toowoomba Grammar Old Boy Will Nason, who was quite the player in the GPS competition last year, had a good showing, converting three-from-three.
Beside him was Iona College product Saxon Warwick and St Laurence’s College alumni Jake Kurbatoff was rock solid at lock.
Coach Cian O’Connor said how his side stayed composed when not playing their best footy.
“We need to better at completing opportunities when in the opposition’s 22,” O’Connor said about an area needing improvement.
In a late afternoon women’s match on the Gold Coast, Bond Uni emjoyed a six tries to nil victory over Easts.
The 45-7 win was a gala second round performance from the Bond girls, while also continuing the Tigers difficult start to the season after its squad from sapped of depth by the unavailability of its elite representative players for the first few weeks.
And in the late women’s match, Souths enjoyed a good win over University, but The Students coach Saelio said the performance was a “huge improvement’’ from the first round against GPS.
He said the effort was faultless, and the forward pack as a unit outstanding.
“The forwards put in a dominant game against a bigger pack from Souths, outr set piece against Souths was what set the tone for the game for us,’’ coach Sav said.
“Souths worked really well to their strengths which was to get into out 22 and then use their big forwards to power over with relentless pick and drive and one off runners.
“So we had to keep them pinned down in their half and pressure them to try and force them to make mistakes and get to our set piece where we could launch our attack from.
“We still haven’t got our combinations 100 per cent set in our backs but we are very close.
Individually the backs are brilliant. What we need is for them to get a few click right here and there and we should be rolling ready well as a unit.’’
He said dropped ball at times hurt the side and improvement was needed to the kicking game.
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