Rugby League Central Coast: Top talking points from round eight

He has made a habit of spectacular diving tries, and Kincumber’s Josh Woutersz was at it again with a special feat for the Colts.

Check out the top talking points from round eight of the RLCC. Picture: Julian Andrews

It was another weekend for the big headlines in local Central Coast rugby league, with one team sensationally snapping a six-year drought and another reaffirming its premiership credentials during round eight of the RLCC.

Check out match reports for the games here, and see what is making news with some of the top talking points below.

THE KEY CHANGE BEHIND OURIMBAH’S WIN

James Maloney was key to Ourimbah breaking through for its first win of the season. Picture: Sue Graham

Undoubtedly the story of the weekend was Ourimbah snapping a 2170-day drought to record its first A-grade win since 2019 with a 42-22 victory over Terrigal.

After breaking a six-year hiatus to return to the top grade this season, the Magpies had endured a slightly frustrating start to the season, with the team having been very competitive and pushing their opponents but ultimately failing to record a win over its first four games.

However a chat initiated by former NRL star, local junior and Ourimbah captain James Maloney helped the side tweak its focus and ultimately turn its fortunes.

“We had a bit of a meeting earlier in the week and just spoke about being more ruthless and not being content or happy with just competing,” said assistant coach Kyle Whiteford.

“James Maloney was big on this: just breaking things down to the fact that every play is a contest that we want to win, whether we have the ball or not.

“It was about really stripping it back and being accountable for each opportunity and winning those little battles rather than looking too far ahead. We just wanted to get the process right and do the right things.

“It all came off for us because I don’t think we made many errors in the first half; pretty much everything we did turned to gold. It was a good day in that regard.

“But just the confidence was great, especially because we haven’t been getting the wins. We didn’t play like a side that was winless. Mentally we were all in a good headspace and everyone was really keen. We were just happy to get out there and give it a good crack.”

Unsurprisingly, Maloney was also huge for the Magpies on the field, pulling the strings as the side ran in seven first half tries to take a thumping 38-0 lead into the break before cruising home in the second half.

After getting the monkey off their back, the Magpies will be out to make it back-to-back wins when they travel to MacKillop Oval this Sunday to take on the star-studded Kincumber Colts, led by their own former NRL stars in Matt Moylan and David Fifita.

WOUTERSZ ON FIRE

Josh Woutersz with one of his trademark spectacular dives in the corner against Erina in round five. Picture: Julian Andrews

Speaking of the Colts, they snapped a two-match losing streak in style by running in nine tries in the 46-12 hammering of Berkeley Vale at Ted Doyle Oval.

And while the team performance was impressive, winger Josh Woutersz stole the show with four tries in the first half, including a 19-minute hat-trick.

Woutersz once again treated the crowd to a spectacle by laying on a couple of his now trademark acrobatic diving finishes in the right-hand corner, with his four-try haul lifting him well clear at the top of the tryscoring standings with 11 from five games to be three clear of his nearest rival.

“He can finish a try, I’ll give him that,” said Kincumber captain-coach David Fifita. “He makes it look easy, his aerial work is great and he executes really well for us.”

While the winger, who has scored in all five of the Colts’ games, has been lethal close to the line, his skipper also made a point to highlight the good work that goes on inside him, with the right edge combination that includes Nathan Davis and Jesse Abbott proving to be particularly dangerous.

“We joke that we’re all taking the dirty carries for Woutersz and we just let him finish it,” laughed Fifita. “He’s doing his job really well though.”

ERINA EXTENDS IMPRESSIVE TWO-YEAR RUN

The Eagles have extended their impressive regular-season winning streak. Picture: Julian Andrews

It was another super impressive performance from ladder leaders Erina, who overcome a 12-point deficit against a strong Wyong side to prevail 20-12 in a top-of-the-table clash at Erina Oval.

The win takes the defending premiers to six from six to start the season, with the side putting a four-point buffer between itself and the trailing trio of The Entrance, Toukley and the Roos.

Perhaps more impressively, the victory has extended Erina’s remarkable form that has seen the side not lose a regular-season game for nearly two years.

While the Eagles went down to Toukley in last year’s major semi-final and were handed losses on the ladder on account of two forfeits during the 2024 season, they haven’t lost a regular season game that they have taken part in since 9 July 2023, when the Roos pipped them 24-22 in round 12 of the 2023 season. For the record, that’s 701 days.

Since then they have won a remarkable 19 straight regular season fixtures in an impressive example of a team that turns up each week and simply does not have a bad day.

“The blokes we’ve got in the footy side, it’s no coincidence that they’re on every week because they love the sport and love being around each other,” said coach Dane Allen.

“I think it’s easier to get a little more complacent when it’s a bit more of a chore. Not in terms of winning, but if you don’t like the blokes around you then you can have those days.

“But that’s something we value, that camaraderie aspect, and I think that plays a part in why these blokes don’t let each other down. We don’t have those down weeks because everyone’s enjoying each other’s company.”

UNSUNG HERO GETS ERINA HOME

Luke Maljevac had a blinder Erina in round eight. Picture: supplied

It was a good weekend for wingers, with Erina’s Luke Maljevac picking up a hat-trick in the Eagles’ impressive 20-12 comeback victory over the Roos.

With his team down 12-0 and under the pump in the first half, the winger proved to be somewhat of an unsung hero as he got the team on the board late in the first half, before running in another two to put the Eagles in front midway through the second half.

“It was a great hat-trick. There were two quality finishes, really good finishes, on the back of a couple of really nice passes from Cameron Davies,” said coach Dane Allen.

But while the hat-trick was crucial in the eight-point win, Allen said Maljevac – who now has the second-most tries in the competition with eight – did far more than just finish off a couple of nice backline moves in the corner.

“He got our players’ player. He scored three tries but he would have had 20 carries and made 200 run metres. Yes, he scored three, but he did a lot of work on the footy apart from that.

“He was phenomenal for us and so was our other winger Tim Fitzpatrick. They just took us forward all day, were a constant handful and made a couple of line breaks each. It was really good.”