Penrith District Rugby League: Seven players ordered off, round 11 wrap
With seven players ordered from the field, Cec Blinkhorn Oval was no place for the faint-hearted on Saturday night in local Penrith footy. Catch the latest from all four A-grade encounters.
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Windsor and defending champions Emu Plains raised the bar in a titanic clash, sending a clear message to the rest of the competition. While, with seven players ordered from the field, Cec Blinkhorn Oval was no place for the faint-hearted on Saturday night.
Full wrap from round 11.
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TITLE HEAVYWEIGHTS RAISE THE BAR
Windsor moved to outright favourites after the Wolves solidified their position at the top of the table in a fierce battle with Emu Plains, defeating the defending champions 30-16 at Leonay Oval on Saturday night.
In a take-no-prisoners contest, both forward packs threw self-preservation out the window, sending a clear message to the rest of the competition about what it takes to win big games.
“Emu Plains are the benchmark,” said proud Windsor skipper Eton Lindsay, who led from the front in arguably the most physical contest of the season.
“They’ve had a bit of a hot and cold season, but when you’re out there, you know they’re the benchmark.
“They hit harder than everyone else. They don’t give up, they’re very consistent, and credit to them they brought the best out of us today.”
Played with finals like intensity, Tom Romer’s Emu outfit dominated the early exchanges and struck the first blow when Cameron Williams split the defence from close range to make it 6-0 in the ninth minute.
Daniel Arona almost drew Windsor level several minutes later but the battering ram wouldn't be denied midway through the opening half, forcing his way over to level the scores.
In an epic tussle, Windsor lost five-eighth Tori Willie to an ankle injury before halftime. Shifting from centre, Ben Attard covered for the linchpin and almost broke the deadlock, only to be pulled up short by a sensational Jake Bentley try-saving tackle.
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As tempers threatened to boilover on halftime both sides were reduced to 12 when Emu forward Asueru Tafau and Windsor’s Aidan Ryan were both sent to the sin bin.
Luke McDonald gave Windsor a six-point buffer after the break, but the centre’s effort was quickly counted by Williams, who scored his second from an attacking grubber to leave Emu two adrift.
Nearing the hour mark and with the contest still evenly poised, the Wolves made their move with back-to-back tries. Bench prop Jordan Hannon struck from nowhere, bursting through the line to score before halfback Frank Toomalatai sent Ryan racing away to make 24-10.
A stunning solo effort by veteran centre Greg Alderson kept the home side afloat, but the Wolves moved three points clear at the top of the ladder after winger Jeshua Maa-Nelson raced away to score the final four-pointer in the 70th minute.
BENCH OF GOLD
With little between the sides, it was the efforts of a couple of bench players that proved the difference for Windsor.
Thrown into the middle, Hannon more than held his own in the tough stuff and with plenty to prove, stormed away like a runaway centre to score the pivotal try.
“Jordan is finding form and getting better each week,” said Lindsay.
“He has watched from afar over the last couple of years and seen what Emu has done to us in big games, and that’s one of his motivations for coming back. The boys hold on to the fact that they beat us in that grand final two years ago, and that fuels us.”
Boasting a wealth of depth, Luke McDonald came off the pine and with limited touches came up with two massive plays in the second 40 minutes. The Luke Lewis Cup rep made a try out of nothing, and then broke clear to set Maa-Nelson away untouched.
“Luke’s got spiders on him,” Lindsay said. “When he gets a bit of space, he knows how to get away with it, he’s just unbelievable when it comes to that.”
BETTER DAYS AHEAD
Emu’s third loss of the season sees the reigning champions slip to fifth, but they showed enough in a strong all-round performance to suggest they’ll take some beating come finals time.
Dean Barnes and Romer matched the Wolves upfront, while halfback Williams was at his feisty best in dominant two-try performance.
Bentley was a force down back. Targeted by an onslaught of high balls, the reliable fullback didn’t skip a beat and continually put his team on the front foot with powerful kick returns.
SKIPPER POUNCES LATE
Some last minute heroics from captain Cooper Bonney has seen Brothers cap off a remarkable comeback to pinch a 32-all draw against a highly fancied St Marys combination at Parker Street Reserve.
In a frenetic closing 12 minutes, Saints looked to have done enough when damaging front-rower Penita Tuavao and hooker Brock Stapleton scored back-to-back to blow the margin out to 32-22.
But as they did all afternoon, the home side kept finding a way to claw back into a contest that finished with each team scoring six tries.
Seemingly on the scrap heap with four minutes left, centre Zane Lang charged onto a Jarrod Considine pass to edge Brothers within six. Then, in the final play of the day, the five-eighth turned provider again, hoisting a pinpoint bomb that ended in the arms of Junior Moaga, who then found Bonney with a miracle one-arm pass to almost complete the comeback.
Needing a conversion to lock the scores, Considine duly stepped up and finished a classic match in style.
“It was pretty exciting,” said Bonney of the chaotic ending that keeps Brothers’ season alive.
“The last try was just spontaneous. We caused them some problems with the highball earlier, so we just tried our hand and it ended up in my hands and paid off.
“They were too good for us in the first round and we weren’t happy with the big score they put on us. So to come out and perform much better with a couple of boys out of position is a major boost to our confidence.”
Sailosi Torovi was outstanding for St Marys. A constant threat on the left, the winger showed great strength to score a first half double to give his side a slender 14-12 lead.
Brothers also had success on the left. Lang crossed twice, while winger Siaosi Huihui also bagged a brace that included a sizzling kick-chase solo effort.
Despite the draw, St Marys still cling to second spot, although captain John Faiumu refused to shy away from what might have been.
“It was disappointing – we talked about playing the whole 80 minutes throughout the week,” said Faiumu.
“We’ve been playing in patches the last couple of weeks. And if you do that against a team like Brothers, you know that they’ll stay in the fight.
“It’s definitely something for us to take away and build on leading into the back end of the season.”
BETTER THAN A LOSS
Although they didn’t secure the two points, for a desperate Brothers team outside the top six, a draw keeps the Damian Lane-coached side in the finals mix.
“We’ve been there or thereabouts against a couple of top sides this season, but just haven’t been able to get the win,” said Lane.
“We missed the points, but the draw is better than a loss. It was a good game, I think both sides played the middle quite well and exploited the edges when they needed to.
“I was really proud of the boys resilience in the end, I think that’s the key word for us today, resilience.
“We know we can beat those sides above us. We’ve just got to be a little bit better, but I think we can definitely push for a spot in the top six.”
WILD NIGHT AT COLYTON
With seven players ordered from the field, Cec Blinkhorn Oval was no place for the faint hearted on Saturday night as Colyton put its season back on track with a commanding 34-18 win over St Clair.
Coming off two heavy defeats and battling to hold down sixth spot, Todd Councillor’s Colts came out all guns blazing and put the result to bed with four opening half tries to lead 24-6.
In a triumphant homecoming, giant Colyton winger Shaun Va’alepu scored back-to-back tries following his stint in the Macarthur competition. But the crowd favourite got more than he bargained for after the break when he was collected high by Kyle King-Bird, in an incident that saw the Comets half sent off in the 57th minute and Va’alepu requiring a couple of stitches.
Cashing in on the one-man advantage, Kaylem Falaniko found James Ross with a looping long ball in the next set, and the centre did the rest to make it 34-12.
In a fiery contest, both sides lost players to the sin bin before halftime, then shortly after the restart, Colyton lost another two and St Clair one in what proved a nightmare for timekeepers on the sidelines.
In a mixed night, Colyton’s Lifi Tia-Kilifi barged over for his side’s first four-pointer, but the big prop’s night finished two minutes earlier than expected when he was sent off for verbal dissent.
“It was a heated game,” said Colyton club president Scott Thompson.
“Both sides played with passion, and after a couple of poor performances our accountability was on the line. We had several under-19s players back up and I don’t think we had a bad player.
“The forwards aimed up and played long minutes, and Shaun was excellent in his first game of the season. Now the challenge is to maintain consistency.”
CAMBO DO ENOUGH
They weren’t at their best, but Cambridge Park did enough to down Minchinbury 32-16 at Federation Forest.
The win, Cambo’s sixth of the season, moves them to 15 points – just one shy of St Marys and St Clair in equal second on the ladder.
Led by Harry Lohia, the visitors shot out of the blocks scoring four tries to lead 18-0 after as many minutes. Showcasing all his tricks, the half sent Fatafehi Kusitafu across on the left edge, then kicked for a Jordan-Trae Cardona try before his long pass sent Lafoga Leituala over out wide.
Filling in at fullback, Jacob Swann-Knight also caused Minchinbury plenty of headaches. Full of running, he paved the way for Leituala’s first of the day, then flew solo before halftime, racing the length of the field from a 20m restart.
Despite trailing 24-0, the Jets regrouped and won the second half 16-8. Halfback Jayden Missio proved elusive with two tries, and when winger Ian French crossed from a fumbled bomb, Minchinbury suddenly found themselves within striking distance at 28-16.
But with time almost up, centre John Vunga barged over for Cambo’s seventh to round out the 16-point win.
They didn’t get the chocolates, but with a 30.5 points start, the Jets did enough to retain the Don Feltis Challenge Cup for another week.
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