Collegians have kept themselves firmly in the Harrigan Cup Minor Premiership and top-three race, storming home with three second-half tries to overturn a 10-point halftime deficit and defeat Dapto 16-14 in a dramatic contest in their postponed Round 5 washout fixture.
With the victory, Collegians move into a share of second place alongside Corrimal and Dapto, all tied on 10 points. They now trail co-leaders Wests and Thirroul by two points, with six rounds left in the regular season.
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The Butchers looked in complete control during the opening 40 minutes, shutting out last year’s minor premiers while building a deserved 10-0 advantage. Christopher Ravarua opened the scoring before captain Thomas Freebairn crossed for Dapto’s second try. Troy Pieper converted one of the two tries to send the visitors into the halftime break with a handy lead.
Whatever was said in the Collegians sheds at halftime had the desired effect, with the home side emerging with renewed energy and purpose.
Tex Anderson sparked the comeback with a try in the 50th minute before crossing again just eight minutes later to draw the scores level at 10-all.
With momentum firmly in their favour, Collegians took the lead for the first time inside the final 10 minutes when Cooper Barnes crossed for a converted try to make it 16-10.
Dapto mounted one final challenge, with Kirtie Fisher touching down in the 76th minute to reduce the margin to two points. However, Pieper was unable to convert from out wide, allowing Collegians to hold on for a courageous 16-14 victory after a dominant defensive effort in the closing stages.
The win completed an impressive second-half turnaround for Collegians, while Dapto will rue a missed opportunity after controlling much of the first half.
Photo credit: Denis Ivaneza