Macarthur Rugby League: Nothing went right, octopus arms, finals week 1 talking points
The opening round of the Macarthur Rugby League finals didn’t go to plan for everyone, yet there was a stack of performances to keep most fans on edge. Finals week one talking points.
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With the opening week of the finals now behind us, there’s still plenty of twists and turns to go before the grand finalists in all grades are decided. Week one talking points.
CAN THIRLMERE PICK UP THE PIECES?
There’s no denying Mittagong’s class last week, but for Thirlmere it was just one of those days where nothing went right.
Right from the opening whistle the Roosters found themselves behind the eight ball, and from there things only got worse.
Now with several players in doubt and their season on the line, it’s back to the drawing to plot against a high flying Oakdale.
LIONS FIGHT FOR LATIMORE
Mittagong’s push to play mid-season recruit Jeremy Latimore in the finals hit a snag before last week’s clash with Thirlmere.
With only two games under his belt in the preliminary rounds, the former NRL backrower was four shy of the six needed to qualify.
Now recovered from a long term calf injury, at the time of writing Mittagong was hopeful of gaining Latimore an exemption.
REPORTING ERROR
Last week we reported that 19-year-old Rhianna Boag was the youngest referee to officiate a first grade match in the Macarthur competition. We’ve since been advised this is incorrect, and ignores current top grade refs Matt Galvin and Aden Hayward who are both 18.
Rhianna is the first female to handle a top grade match.
HOT IN THE BIN
As always there was no shortage of niggle in the Workers and Tigers clash. So it was no surprise when Daniel Payne and Oakdale fullback Jake Steadman were ordered to cool their heels for 10 minutes on the sideline.
The only problem, both were parked up on chairs in direct sunlight leaving them more agitated than when they left the field.
OCTOPUS ARMS
If Oakdale’s pack can hold its own throughout the finals, they’ll take some beating.
Behind a hefty share of go forward, centre Nathan Davis pretty much dances to his own beat. Big enough to crack the line, it’s his ball play in traffic that continues to stump opponents.
The Oaks hit him with numbers, but had no answer to an afternoon of relentless one-arm offloads.
BIG BULLS COLLIDE
Speaking of forward domination, how good is this weekend’s Camden versus Mittagong matchup?
When Danny Fualalo starts rolling it up for the Rams, you can bet Ben Arandt will be his mirror image for the Lions.
With a host of backline talent on show, the dirty yards up the guts could prove the difference.
REGGIES: MUST WATCH FOOTY
The reserve grade comp continues to impress. Last week both finals went to the wire, and all four of the remaining sides are legitimate grand final contenders.
This week Camden tackle The Oaks for a spot in the decider. It’s the reigning premiers against this year’s minor premiers in what shapes as a cracking contest.
On Saturday night, it’ll be season over for one of Mittagong or Oakdale in another flip of the coin contest.
SLIPPERY COBRA
Minto might be the underdogs when they face Camden in the women’s eliminator on Saturday, but the Cobras have plenty of strike.
Katrina Phippen was electric last week in Minto’s 24-10 win over City. Scoring four of her side’s five tries, the classy No.1 took her season tally to 10, moving alongside three others at the top of the try scorers list.
WEEK-2 FINALS
First Grade, Sunday 3 September at Kirkham Park
Thirlmere v Oakdale at 1:15pm
Camden v Mittagong at 3:00pm
Reserve Grade at Kirkham Park
Mittagong v Oakdale at 6:30pm (Saturday)
The Oaks v Camden at 11:30am (Sunday)
Open Age Women at Kirkham Park
Camden v Minto at 5:00pm (Saturday)
Campbelltown Collegians v Narellan at 9:45am (Sunday)
FINALS WEEK ONE WRAP
Thirlmere was the place to be for the opening weekend of the Macarthur Rugby League finals, and there was no shortage of surprises in both the men’s and women’s competitions.
See how the action played out in our week one wrap.
LIONS ROAR ON THE ROAD
Thirlmere were the headline act on Sunday. The Roosters closed out a massive card on home turf yet surprisingly failed to fire a shot against a clinical Mittagong.
After finishing the preliminary rounds in second spot, the Roosters had the inside running but were plagued by a horror start as Mittagong cruised through to next week’s grand final qualifier against Camden with a 34-10 win.
An error in the opening set gifted the visitors field position and the Lions were in no mood to relinquish the opportunity.
After forcing a goal line restart, Keiran Rankmore came close to scoring before five-eighth Nick Eccleston wrestled across next the posts. And it was 8-0 when Bryson Goodwin landed a penalty goal in the 10th minute.
Thirlmere’s woes quickly escalate when winger Waqasaqa Qiolevu grassed a bomb that ended up in the hands of an unmarked Goodwin who converted his own try.
On a day where attacking threats Curtis Scott and Mitch New were largely contained, Thirlmere opened its account when towering backrower Louis Meehan offloaded for Hayden Sutton to sneak over.
But just as they looked to be finding their groove, the fumbles returned.
From an attacking scrum, fullback James Coyne scooted down a short side for centre Liam Henry to open a 20-6 advantage. Then from the restart the Lions marched up field and added a fourth when Liam Cassidy reached over following a last play kick.
Thirlmere showed glimpses of form after the break, but it wasn’t their day. Star No.6 Tim Simona hobbled off in the 68th minute, before workaholic Lions prop Ben Arandt wrapped up the scoring in the closing minutes.
“For the past month we’ve been struggling to get the same side on the park,” said Mittagong captain-coach James Grehan on his side’s sketchy form before the finals.
“But we were pretty much at full strength today and it paid dividends. We got off to a strong start and never really looked back.
“Arandt and Cassidy were quality upfront. I don’t know how Ben keeps doing it, he’s got superhuman powers.”
And on an underwhelming Thirlmere, Grehan wasn’t ready to write them off.
“We were fortunate in some respects to hold so much ball in the first half. We’ve been on the other end like Thirlmere today – you just do so much defence that you end up gassed.”
OAKDALE SENDS RIVALS PACKING
Oakdale continued its stranglehold over The Oaks, rounding out a hat-trick of season victories against their rivals with a comfortable 36-8 win in the eliminator.
Josh Carr’s dominance over the Tigers continued. A hat-trick to the Workers backrower bettering the double he scored when the sides met just two weeks ago.
That was on the right edge. On the left, Nathan Davis proved just as lethal.
The punishing centre finished with one try but offloaded for another three as a relentless Oakdale powered on from their 14-8 half time lead with four unanswered tries.
Daniel Payne tried to ignite the Tigers, but the dazzling half was well contained by Oakdale's swarming defence. It was a frustrating afternoon for the No.7 who spent time in the sin bin before finishing on the end of several penalised high shots.
He wasn’t the only Tiger frustrated by a determined Oakdale.
Centre Luke Gibson was marched in the 69th minute for spraying the referee. After that, Oakdale piled on two more tries including the last where centre Cleveland McGhie fielded a cross-field kick before turning the ball back inside for Carr’s third.
“Payney’s a good footballer but we shut him down and they didn’t really have too many other options,” said beaming Oakdale captain-coach Kyle Fraser.
“Our defence was on today. Our attack came good but we still dropped too much ball early on.
“Davis doesn’t need too many touches to influence a game, and he was at his best today. But our backrowers were good too, Carr and Emmitt Carlile were our two best players, they are at their best when they just run the ball.”
REGGIES CLIFFHANGERS
Any of the four remaining sides in the reserve grade competition wouldn’t look out of place in the decider after two days of quality reggies action.
In a spiteful contest on Saturday night, Oakdale and Picton battled it out with 12 men after each had a player sent off either side of half time.
Oakdale opened a handy 16-6 lead when Bailey Steadman kicked a penalty goal just after the break, but a double to Magpies centre Barry Baird saw Picton quickly level at 16-all.
With both teams fighting to extend their season, in the end it was Oakdale who came out on top 22-16 after winger Harrison Nairn gapped the field over 80m to score the match winner.
On Sunday, second placed Camden were pushed all the way by Mittagong before coming up trumps 20-14.
The reigning premiers led 16-8 at the break but Mittagong edged to within two when Brayden Boaden dived under the posts to start the second half.
Blows were traded until Jackson Willis showed his class in the final 10 minutes. With the match in the balance after the Lions had come close to scoring, the Rams No.6 sliced through Mittagong’s left edge for the decisive final try.
Next week, minor premiers The Oaks will look to book their place in the grand final when they face Camden, while Mittagong and Oakdale will battle it out to extend their seasons.
JETS MASSIVE STATEMENT
Third placed Narellan have shaken up the Open Age Women’s competition after the Jets knocked off last year’s grand finalists Camden on Sunday.
The nail biting 10-4 victory is the second time Narellan have rolled the highly fancied Rams this season, and came on the back of tries to crafty playmaker Jemma Crane and winger Jordyn Edgington.
In the other game, fourth ranked Minto finished Campbelltown City’s season on Saturday evening with a comfortable 24-10 win.
Next week, the Jets’ title quest ramps up against minor premiers Campbelltown Collegians where the winner advances straight through to the grand final.
Camden’s season now goes to sudden death, and they won’t have it all their own way next week against a rapidly improving Minto.
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