Young gun Corey Fenning’s milestone not enough as Blackhawks stun Clydesdales

Not even a milestone moment for one of the Western Clydesdales’ brightest young talents was enough in a clash to forget against Townsville on Saturday night. Here are the big talking points.

Mac Puafisi in action for the Western Clydesdales. Picture: Benny Hassum Photography.

It was a game to forget for the Western Clydesdales as they suffered a brutal 44-12 defeat to the Townsville Blackhawks on Saturday night.

Not even a first major milestone for young gun Corey Fenning could dampen the blow as Jason Alchin’s side suffered their eighth-straight loss.

Check out the biggest talking points from the contest here.

Horror start puts Clydesdales on back foot

Entering the game off the back of three crushing defeats, the Clydesdales would have been eager to set the tone early.

However the Blackhawks took control from the opening set of the contest as they scored inside the first minute and then scored a second try just three minutes later.

By the time they were 10-0 down, the Clydesdales made two errors and completed just two plays.

Old habits return to haunt Clydesdales

One of the biggest areas of concern throughout the opening stages of the season was the conceding of tries in flurries.

When they conceded once, another try was often not far away.

This was the case for the Clydesdales on Saturday night as they conceded eight tries across four windows.

The first window saw Alchin’s side concede in the first and fourth minute, the second was in the 14th and 18th, the third in the 38th and 41st and the last was in the 59th and 64th minutes.

Errors halt fightback

After Townsville took a 20-0 lead inside the opening 20 minutes, a lot was needed to go right for the Clydesdales if they were to pull off an unlikely comeback.

However, unfortunately for the Clydesdales, they hampered their own ability to claw their way back into the game with several errors.

Alchin’s side completed just 20 of their 34 sets at a completion rate of 58 per cent.

Corey Fenning lines up a conversion for the Western Clydesdales. Picture: Benny Hassum Photography

Young centre brings up milestone

Playing in just his 11th game of his Hostplus Cup career, Corey Fenning scored his ninth try and made two conversions to cross over the 100 points mark for his career.

Fenning has been one of the shining lights of a difficult 2024 season and was the hero in his side’s only win of the campaign back in round 8, where he scored two tries and made four conversions.

All to play for this weekend

The Clydesdales will make the short trip down the range to take on the Ipswich Jets this Sunday in what could be a season-defining encounter.

The Jets head into this clash off the back of their second win of the season and are currently just above the Clydesdales on the ladder.

When these sides met in round 2, the Jets downed their rivals 36-16 to claim their first win in more than 500 days.

With the Clydesdales up against some talented sides in the run home, it will be crucial for them to put in a strong performance against Ipswich.