Macarthur Rugby League: Stunning individual returns headline round 11
Club statisticians were left scrambling for the record books after a couple of massive individual returns in round 11 of the Macarthur RL. That and more from all five venues.
Local Sport
Don't miss out on the headlines from Local Sport. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Club statisticians were left scrambling for the record books after a couple of massive individual returns in round 11 of the Macarthur RL. 
While a serious injury brought play to a halt before Camden and The Oaks turned on a thriller in a grand final rematch before a huge crowd at Kirkham Park.
Macarthur RL wrap.
RELATED CONTENT:
MACARTHUR RL: 60+ PLAYERS TO WATCH
RAMS LAND PERFECT 10
It was Old Boys Day at Kirkham Park and Camden didn’t let the locals down, carving out another victory as the Rams defied The Oaks 28-18 in a gripping rematch of last season’s grand final.
Out to extend their perfect start to 10 wins, the Rams had the massive crowd on side from the get-go when mid-season recruit Fiohiva Fainga’a exploded of his left foot for the opening try of the afternoon.
Then just as they were about to shift gears, a spate of uncharacteristic errors handed The Oaks an opportunity to re-enter the contest. A wave of possession was all Mitchell Brasington needed to warm into his comeback after missing four matches with a knee injury.
Pivotal on the left edge, the Tigers captain-coach instigated back-to-back tries to William Hunt as the runaway winger propelled his side to a 12-4 advantage after 13 minutes.
Needing inspiration in the continued absence of skipper Brad Speechley, Camden turned to Jackson Willis and the creative five-eighth came to the party with several telling kicks.
An attacking grubber gifted Trent Peoples a four-pointer, then after a long range effort from teenage fullback Riley Oitmann, Willis’ sweetly timed sideline conversion saw Camden open a 16-12 advantage.
But just like last season’s thrilling extra-time decider, The Oaks refused to surrender and following a scorching run by hooker Mitch New, the visitors headed to the sheds with a two-point buffer when Daniel Payne stepped through to score under the posts.
At three tries apiece, the onslaught of four-pointers looked set to continue immediately after halftime when returning Camden winger Eddie Aiono crossed from a contentious pass to make it 22-18.
From there the points dried up, as the Rams spent the best part of the closing 20 minutes defending in their own half. The Oaks created several chances on either side of the ruck, but as hard as they tried, the Tigers couldn’t find a way through.
With the hard work done, Camden gave another reminder of why they’re the team to beat. Fighting against the run of play, Willis and Fainga’a joined forces to send winger John Ryan over for the match winning try.
“I think that second half was probably our best half of the year,” said Speechley of his team’s resilient goal line defence.
“Just defensively. We’ve been talking a fair bit about our urgency on our line and turning them away, similar to where we were at last year. And we managed to dig deep and keep them scoreless in the second half.”
While nowhere near their precision best in attack, Camden were well served across the park by a mix of old and new faces.
“We tend to lean on Bailey Dickinson and Danny Fualalo in big games, and they played big minutes for us,” said Speechley of his key premiership winning middles.
“Jackson has led us around the field the whole year, and is probably playing his best footy with a bit better balance. I also thought Sammy Lynch was good on debut during his 15-minute stint.”
INJURY BREAK
A serious knee injury to Challis Tupuola near halftime brought play to a halt for 10 minutes as the Tigers winger received medical attention before being assisted from the field.
Initial reports suggest a dislocated patella (kneecap), but the full extent of the injury is expected to be determined in the coming week.
SPACEMAN LANDS
Since joining from western NSW, Fainga’a is proving a quality addition to an already elite Camden line up.
A former centre with the Parkes Spacemen, the No.3 competes hard and is a handful with a head of steam.
“Fainga’a was outstanding again, he was man of the match last week,” said Speechley.
“He moved down here about a month ago, but he was travelling from down from Parkes before that for about six weeks to train once or twice a week.
“Now he’s down here full time, he’s a real good find for us.”
LIONS FEAST ON HOME TURF
After four consecutive losses, Mittagong rejoined the winners’ circle in spectacular fashion as the Lions piled on 13 tries in a landslide 76-10 victory over Thirlmere.
Desperate to keep their season alive, Mittagong struck in the second minute when centre Liam Cassidy backed up Mitchell Barbuto to score the first of his two tries. And the points continued to flow as the Lions changed ends with 40 unanswered points.
Missing key players including skipper Kye Madden, fullback Barry Ruttley and the suspended Curtis Scott, Thirlmere simply had no answers as Mittagong scored at will.
In his best outing since arriving from Oakdale, Jake Steadman delivered a memorable performance, scoring four tries and kicking 11 goals for a total of 38 points. At the time of writing, club officials were scrambling to determine whether it’s a club record.
Barbuto and Joseph Eccleston also finished with doubles, while backrower Justin Smith crossed for both of Thirlmere’s four-pointers.
“We needed the win today, but I told the boys it means nothing if we can’t back it up next week against City,” said co-coach Russell Lewis, whose side are currently in sixth spot and two points adrift of City in fifth.
“Liam Bayliss came up from reggies to play halfback, and in a few other tweaks, Joey Eccleston moved to fullback and picked up our player of the match award.
“Jake has been a bit hot and cold this season, but he played with a level head in his best game of the year.”
ROOS REBOUND
Campbelltown City proved far too strong for Narellan, cementing their place inside the top-five with a 48-8 win at Fullwood Reserve.
After their breakthrough victory over Thirlmere, the Jets continued from where they left off and were first to trouble the scorers when Isaiah Tuiaki forced the ball into the right corner in the fifth minute.
From there it was all City, as the Roos kicked away with 48 unanswered points in a little over 60 minutes of playing time.
Hard running centre Xavier Tauaifaiga crossed twice on the left edge before the sides swapped ends at 22-4.
With Mick Stevens directing traffic, City continued to test Narellan’s right edge defence, and it wasn’t long before winger Caleb Warman registered his second to make it 38-4 on the hour.
In all, City scored nine tries to two with fullback Anthony Leatham landing six conversions for a personal haul of 16 points.
PROP’S STUNNING RETURN
Talk about breaking convention — Josh Carr’s membership in the front rowers club is in jeopardy following the prop’s stunning four-try haul in Oakdale’s 40-22 win over East Campbelltown.
After a mid-season transition from the back row to the middle, Carr has become a regular on the Workers’ score sheet and it was no different at Waminda Oval on Sunday. After muscling over in the 13th minute, he quickly doubled up following an Alex Isdale bomb.
Chasing a fifth straight win, Oakdale had their hands full trying to shake a rejuvenated Eagles who took the lead following tries to Donovan Boney and a runaway effort to Bose Serukalou.
But with the next four tries, the visitors opened at 28-10 buffer on the hour and put the result to bed in the closing stages with a second try to centre Cooper Smith and a fourth to Carr.
While Carr had a day out, Isdale proved the go-to man. In another energetic showing, the halfback scrambled across for a try and set up the last three for Carr – making the towering prop earn the last with a 30m dash to the line.
East Campbelltown finished with four tries with Ray Redman and Kea Stevenson both crossing after the break.
In the only dark spot for Oakdale, player-coach Kyle Fraser suffered a leg injury and was assisted from the field midway through the second half.
COLLIES SURVIVE SCARE AT ONSLOW
Campbelltown Collegians have fought off a gallant South West, outlasting the Gonnas 42-28 in a victory that moves Collies to outright third place on the competition table.
After racing in five of the opening six four-pointers, Collies led 24-6 and seemingly had the game in hand nearing halftime.
Joel Roberts was instrumental in the Goannas comeback. After showing immense strength to get his side on the board, the powerhouse middle delivered again midway through the second half, crashing over to reduce the margin to 36-28.
The comeback continued to gather momentum nearing the 70th minute when fullback Soteila Fatui won the race to plant the ball in the right corner.
With the alarm bells ringing, Collies captain Tifa Iuta took matters into his own hands, scattering at least four defenders in a crushing run that put the Campbelltown side 16 clear shortly before the final siren.
The try was Iuta’s second of the half and secured his side a third straight win.
In an entertaining 13-try shootout, both sides produced some cracking efforts. Collies winger Ray Mu have several fine touches, turning on the class in the lead up to long range efforts by Leon Longbottom and halfback Tyrone Harding.
Join the conversation
‘Heart was racing’: Huge blow landed in finals race
One side has given its chances of playing finals footy a huge boost after prevailing in a high-scoring thriller in the CCRU.
Read more
Netball NSW Premier League players to watch in the finals
The best of the best are heading to finals, and these 20+ players are leading the charge. These are the U23s and Opens players to watch in the Netball NSW Premier League finals.
Read more