The Corrimal Cougars claimed an 24–22 win over the Thirroul Butchers in a tense Battle of the Beaches clash on Sunday at Ziems Park, continuing their strong form in Round 9 of the Harrigan Cup.
Elsewhere, Collegians were too strong for Dapto, running away with a 42–10 victory. De La Salle also returned to winning form, defeating the Western Suburbs Devils 24–18 in a solid performance.
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Corrimal Go Back-to-back
The Corrimal Cougars are on a roll, making it two wins in a row after a tense 24–22 victory over the Thirroul Butchers in the Battle of the Beaches.
The Cougars drew first blood with a converted try to second-rower Matt Payne in the 10th minute after a period of sustained attack.
Less than 5 minutes later, the Cougars showcased their support play after winger Zachariah Nachar raced down the left sideline on a kick return before offloading to support on the inside. Five-eighth Brandon Tikinau finished off the length of the field effort, and all of a sudden, the hosts were up 12-0 after 15 minutes.
From there, both sides went set for set as they settled into the arm wrestle. The Butchers crossed in the 34th minute through hooker Brad Deitz, scooting over from dummy half to reduce the margin to 12-6 at the break.
The visitors were the first to score in the second stanza, scoring back-to-back through halfback Tarje Whitford and Jackson Smith, turning a six-point deficit into a four-point lead at 16-12 with half an hour remaining.
The Cougars hit the front again in the 56th minute with a converted try to Nachar, who juggled the ball before grounding it after a clever play down a narrow left edge.
In the 67th minute, a Kamren Cryer midfield bomb was allowed to bounce, with the Cougars retaining possession for Kyle Wright to extend the lead to 24-16.
The Butchers reduced the margin to two after some classy work from five-eighth Aaymon Fitzgibbon, who converted his own try. However, the Cougars were able to hold on for the win over the final seven minutes.
[Watch] Cougars Brandon Tikinau scores after some great lead up work by winger Zachariah Nachar
Collegians Too Strong For Dapto
Collegians were too strong at home, beating the Dapto Canaries 42–10 in the Harrigan Cup.
It was a strong all-round performance from Collegians, who looked sharp in attack and solid in defence, scoring eight tries to two.
Collies winger James Lee (main picture) picked up a first-half double, becoming the competition’s leading try scorer with nine tries for the season.
Blair Grant continued his good form with the boot, converting 5 from 8 attempts to lead the overall points tally with 68.
Dapto’s points came from tries by winger Jason Gillard and interchange Justin Jones, with Troy Pieper kicking one conversion.
[Watch] Collegians winger James Lee scores the first of his double.
De La Salle Holds Off Wests
De La Salle returned to winning form with a hard-fought 24–18 win over the Western Suburbs Devils in Round 9 of the Harrigan Cup, after the match was delayed in the 64th minute due to a serious leg injury to De la Salle centre Eparama Navale.
Wests started strong with winger Te Umuariki Heremia-Tukere scoring in the 4th minute before the visitors hit the lead 6-4 with a converted try to Elijah Paea in the 17th minute.
Heremia-Tukere had a brace inside 25 minutes before Dylan Palmer-Quigg extended the Devils lead to 14-6 after a De La Salle error in their red zone five minutes before the break. Paea had his second on the stroke of halftime to reduce the margin to 14-10.
After a sustained attack early in the second half from Wests failed to turn into points, De La Salle was first to score, leveling at 14-all on the back of some ad-lib footy, including a neat chip and regather from Nevale, before offloading to Christian Vaimili Toalepai.
The Devils took back the lead 18-14 on the hour mark after halfback Dane Chisholm put a deft banana kick into the corner for winger Lachlan Hurst to pluck it out of the air to score.
The game was paused due to a serious injury to Nevale in the 65th minute, with the match shifted to the No. 2 field for the final 15 minutes.
De La finished the game stronger, with second-rower Meli Nassau scoring two unanswered tries, including the last off a Kobie Wilson grubber, which was fumbled by a Wests defender before Nassau pounced on the loose ball.
[Watch] Wests winger Lachlan Hurst flys high to score off a well-placed Dane Chisholm banana kick
The Lower Grades
The Avondale Wombats caused an upset over Harrigan Plate competition leaders Wests 28-6, Helensburgh piled on 64 points to Dapto’s 6, and the Butchers kept Corrimal scoreless, posting five unanswered tries in their 28-0 win.
Avondale Greyhounds kept their Harrigan Shield undefeated record intact with a 22-0 win over Figtree. Jesse Passi scored a hat-trick as the Avondale Wombats defeated Wests 38-8, and Windang defeated the Cougars 18-4.
Words | Angelina Raula