We reveal the five biggest talking points from the Western Clydesdales’ BMD Premiership clash with the Mackay Cutters

The Western Clydesdales faced the difficult task of hosting the ladder-leading Mackay Cutters on Sunday. Check out the five biggest talking points from the contest here.

Shenae Ciesiolka in action for the Western Clydesdales. Picture: Benny Hassum Photography.

The Western Clydesdales women’s side suffered a heavy 34-6 defeat against the undefeated Mackay Cutters in round 5 of the BMD Premiership on Sunday.

After a difficult clash for the Clydesdales, we reveal the five biggest talking points from the contest.

Clydesdales without key Origin stars

Coming up against the Cutters was always going to be a challenge in itself but the task was made all the more difficult with stars Ali Brigginshaw, Kezie Apps and Keeley Davis all out for the clash.

The leadership of the trio was sorely missed but Shenae Ciesiolka showed her class in her debut at five-eighth in place of Brigginshaw.

The Broncos NRLW star was one of the standout players for the Clydesdales and was a force in attack and in defence.

Clydesdales fail to make the most of sin bin

With just their first offensive set of the game, the Clydesdales put their foot down early with an impressive kick and chase which put the Cutters on the back foot.

After the linebreak from the kick, Cutters fullback Krystal Blackwell made the tackle to prevent the try but was sent to the sin bin after failing to release in time.

However, despite having the field position and an extra player, the Clydesdales were unable to make the Cutters pay and couldn’t score during the 10 minutes they had the advantage.

In fact, despite being down a player, Mackay dominated the contest and managed to break the deadlock off the final play they were down to 12 to take an early 6-0 lead.

Errors hurt Clydesdales again

Not for the first time this season, the Western Clydesdales put themselves under unnecessary pressure due to simple unforced errors.

Throughout the first 20 minutes of the game, there were countless incomplete sets from the home which prevented them from gaining any momentum.

While they did improve in that area as the game went on, there were still several costly errors which gifted points to the Cutters.

Four tries for the visitors came off the back of knock-ons from the Clydesdales.

Meanwhile in attack, whenever they were in a strong position, the home side often tried to force the issue and make a pass which wasn’t there and would result in a turnover.

Cox provides a spark

Coming off the bench, the dynamic Nikki Cox helped create some momentum in the middle for the hosts.

Her strong tackling and quick feet made her a valuable asset off the bench and she also provided an individual piece of brilliance to give the Clydesdales a glimmer of hope in the second half.

Cox beat several Cutters defenders on her own to score the Clydesdales’ solitary try of the contest.

Cutters’ dominance eventually pays off

In a credit to the tireless defending from the Clydesdales, despite dominating the contest, the Cutters were unable to put the game to bed until the final 10 minutes.

Mackay held a 14-point lead with 10 minutes to go - and after last week’s game where the Tigers scored 10 points in two minutes - the Clydesdales would have known they were still in with a shot.

However, after having the majority of possession, the Cutters eventually earned their rewards as they stormed home to score three tries in the final 10 minutes to seal the win.