Reigning premiers University Pirates remain solid as they grind out narrow win over Casuarina Cougars in NTRU premiership action

UNIVERSITY Pirates showed why it is the premier NT Rugby Union side with a workmanlike 11-7 win over arch rivals Casuarina at Marrara’s Rugby Park on Thursday night.

Casuarina’s Tert Norris (left) doing his best to shake University Pirates defender Wayne Robinson during NTRU premiership action at Marrara’s Rugby Park on Thursday night. Picture: Ivan Rachman

UNIVERSITY Pirates showed why it is the premier NT Rugby Union side with a workmanlike 11-7 win over arch rivals Casuarina at Marrara’s Rugby Park on Thursday night.

A beautifully worked try to University winger David Taylor in the 16th minute gave the Pirates an early 5-0 lead, one they deserved after some crunching defence prevented Casuarina crossing the try line.

Fly half Robbie Butcher, a thorn in the side of opposition sides for at least 15 years, made a break through the middle before releasing wide to Taylor who scored next to the flag.

Butcher’s conversion attempt from the left touch line narrowly missed when it clipped the goal upright and bounced out.

But the Pirates, beaten by Palmerston and South Darwin in consecutive weeks and forced to scramble to a 50-24 win over bottom side Swampdogs last week, had come to play.

A Butcher penalty from near the halfway line took them to an 8-0 lead at half-time against a Cougars side short on ideas but big on handling errors.

Butcher was on hand to kick another penalty goal and lift the Pirates to an 11-0 lead 10 minutes into the second half.

More desperate defence by the Pirates and more dropped ball by the Cougars looked to have sealed a comfortable win with 10 minutes left on the clock.

But Casuarina was not dead, despite its high error count and a University backline that refused to give an inch.

The Cougar pack kept pressing and was finally rewarded when skipper Bobby Nurse went over the line.

Zac Phillips’ conversion from a slight angle made it 11-7 and some anxious minutes for the Pirates.

An errant pass from Jason Lim when the ball cleared his winger with the line in front of him probably summed up Casuarina’s night.

Palmerston jumped into the top four with its 34-10 romp over a disappointing Darwin Dragons on Rugby Park No 2.

The Crocodiles had four converted tries on the way to their best win of the season.

And South Darwin almost broke the 100-point mark in its 95-0 thrashing of the gallant Swampdogs at Rugby Park on Wednesday night.

Misidea Timoteo and Setefano Cakau both ran in three tries as the slick moving Rabbitohs piled on the points.