Another round of the NSW Cup has come and gone and there are still undefeated teams, just as there are struggling teams. Some great clashes this week and here are overviews of them all.
Here is the round 5 wrap of the NSW Cup games:
Newtown Jets 30 (Mitch Brown 2, Dallas Wells, Sami Sauliluma, Patrice Siolo, Nathan Gardner tries; Gardner 3 goals) bt Wentworthville Magpies 18 (Ben Crooks, Adam Quinlan, Daniel Alvaro, Halauafu Lavaka tries; Luke Kelly goal).
Ricky’s View: Newtown are on a roll as they recorded their third straight victory. The spotlight, though, was on the return of Richie Fa’aoso, who has been out for 18 months with a neck injury. The score might suggest the game was close but the Jets were simply far too good for the Magpies, who are languishing near the bottom of the ladder.
Newcastle Knights 34 (Jaelen Feeney 2, Joseph Tapine 2, Chad Redman, Pat Mata’utia tries; Kerrod Holland 5 goals) bt Illawarra Cutters 26 (Yaw Kiti Glymin 2, Tyron Cranston, Peter Mata’utia, Fraser Alcock tries; Shannon Crook 3 goals).
Ricky’s View: The game of the round by far. The Cutters very nearly pulled off a tremendous comeback, as they led 26-24 at one stage after trailing by 24 points. It was not to be, though, as the Knights scored two late tries to seal the win. A clash of the highest order that was very entertaining.
Canterbury Bulldogs 30 (Shaun Lane 2, Tyrone Phillips, Levi Dodd, Tautalatasi Tasi, Matt Frawley tries; Dane Chisholm 2, Dodd goals) bt North Sydney Bears 22 (Sam Manuleleua 2, Nikko Roberts, Brock Gray tries; Roberts 3 goals).
Ricky’s View: Wet conditions played havoc with the play of both sides but it was the Dogs who held on. A spirited performance from the Bears had them close to winning but ultimately, the Dogs had too much class with both Matt Frawley and Dane Chisholm impressing and guiding the Dogs to victory.
Penrith Panthers 12 (Nu’u Akeripa 2 tries; Will Smith, Isaac John goals) bt Wests Tigers 10 (Shannon McDonnell, Chance Peni tries; Josh Drinkwater goal)
Ricky’s View: In a rain-affected, low-scoring game, it was the Panthers who came out on top. Just. Tries were hard to come by for both sides and it was only a late penalty goal that split the teams in the end. Akeripa the star, as he scored a double for Penrith, their only two tries.
Mounties 26 (Gus Aiga 2, Mitchell Cronin, Mitch Cornish, Kurt Baptiste tries; Cornish 3 goals) bt Manly Warringah Sea Eagles 24 (Ben Fritz, Dom Reardon, Tyson Andrews, Uiti Baker tries; Kurt Aldridge 4 goals).
Ricky’s View: Another entertaining clash, as Mounties continued their unbeaten run with a fighting comeback against a spirited Manly side. Down by 14 at one point, Mounties clawed their way back with prop Luke Page starring. Mounties now maintain their unbeaten start to the season, winning all 5 games to start the year.
Wyong Roos 42 (Brendan Elliot 2, Mitch Williams, Tyler Cornish, Brock Molan, Yileen Gordon, Leivaha Pulu tries, Nathan Stapleton 7 goals) Warriors 6 (Nathaniel Peteru try; Api Pewhairangi goal).
Ricky’s View: The Roos made it look all too easy as they steamrolled the Warriors with wonderful efficiency. The rain also affected the clash in Wyong but that did not stop the Roos juggernaut in the second half, as they ran away with the game and overpowered the Warriors side rather easily.