Round 5 Wanneroo v Associates at Kingsway 7th May 2022.
Round 5 Wanneroo v Associates at Kingsway 7th May 2022
STARTING FIFTEEN:
1 Andre Roux
2 Scott Cornell
27 Mauie Te Tana
4 Luke Callan
5 Caleb Karangaroa
6 Andrew King (C)
7 Darcy Hinkley
8 Setafano Launiuvau
9 Brent Anderson
10 Campbell Parata
11 Justin Talemaira
12 Ethan Riley
13 Jayden Stokes
14 Porikapi Tukaki
15 Jordan Grattan (VC)
BENCH:
3 Reuben Baker
16 Jared Ruwhiubott
18 Dylan Hutchins
19 Sitaleki Timani
20 Jordan Templeton
21 Bayce Leatherby
23 Corey Hardie
24
COACHING STAFF:
Ian Armitage
Dave (Lofty) Freeman.
Wanneroo had a couple of changes with Wananga Kingi and Mark Cornell being unavailable, but coach Ian ‘Armo’ Armitage was still able to name a very strong team and bench to play the winless Associates.
Associates opened by having a red-hot crack at the Wanneroo line, only to run into ferocious hits that saw them lose the ball. Ethan Reilly swooped on it and kicked it into touch. Their line out ball was stolen by the Roo Dogs and kicked to Soaks inside centre who returned it for a line out to the Roo Dogs.
The pack gave clean, fast ball to scrum half Brent Anderson, enabling him to give Campbell Parata a bit of room to move in. He took the ball to the line and committed the defence while Ethan made a cleverrun to take his pass and cruise in untouched for the opening score. Campbell kicked the bonus points.
WANNEROO 7 – ASSOCIATES 0
Dave (Lofty) Freeman was overcome with emotion, choked up and very close to tears at this stage. He said his distressed state was unavoidable. It was the result of him having burned the midnight oil to research Soaks patterns of play and tactical shortcomings. It was the pearls of rugby wisdom he revealed to the team that gave them the essential information that enabled them to score. I loaned him a handkerchief to dab his eyes.
Saoks made a determined effort to break through the green line but Wanneroo captain, Andrew King, leading from the front made a big hit that forced Soaks into a hurried kick to touch. Wanneroo had a rare line out malfunction and lost their own throw, which gave Soaks a midfield attacking opportunity. It didn’t last long because the Dogs turned the ball over at the breakdown and sent it out to Ethan. He made a searing run and drew the cover defence before offloading to Porikapi Tukaki who ran well, before being tackled into touch. Soaks kicked their line out ball and regathered it, only to fumble it and give Wanneroo a scrum feed.
Brent gave the scrum ball to Campbell, who released Porikapi. He ran well before passing to Jordan Grattan who had come into the line. Jordan carried the ball strongly before linking up with Porokapi again. He had ran another good support line and sucked in the gold defensive line before setting a good attack ball for his pack.
They relished the opportunity and hammered their way to the line, where Setafano Launiuvau finished off a classic bit of play with a try. This time, Jordan took the conversion and added the two points.
WANNEROO 14 – ASSOCIATES 0
Associates were competitive, but Wanneroo was in the box seat. Brent caught Soaks drop out ball and copped a neck high tackle at the same time. It went unpunished and the error was compounded when the ref awarded a penalty to the visitors. Soaks took a quick tap, but their prop lost the ball in the tackle and Campbell put it into touch. Soaks tried several attacking ploys, but Wanneroo’s aggressive ‘in yer face’ defence was impregnable.
Soaks drove a line out ball for four onerous phases, making it possible for their centre to break into the Dogs 22. But he blew it when he got white line fever, ignored his support and met the green tackle monster. It was hand to hand combat for a while, with no quarter asked or given. The Dogs took the game to Soaks, with Scott Cornell, Luke Callan and Andre ‘Beats’ Roux prominent. Beats must have given more than most because he had to have a lie down and was only revived by the magic sponge, a gentle stroke of his brow and a kiss.
Kingy made a great one handed take from a line out and Wanneroo used the ball perfectly. Quick hands saw it whiz out to Justin ‘Juddy’ Talemaira on the wing. He took off, made good ground, and made a spectacular reverse pass to a support runner, but the ref judged him to be in touch as he did it and gave Soaks a line out. Wanneroo pressured their line and their maul, forcing them to cough up a scrum five metres from their own try line. Brent fed Campbell who tried to slip the ball to Jordan, but it went loose, and the visitors got a scrum feed ten metres out.
Associates scrum half made a magnificent, individual break from the scrum base. He put the afterburners on and rocketed into the green’s 22 before putting a nifty little grubber into the corner as he got closed down. The Dogs cover did their job and got there in time to put the ball into touch. It doesn’t take much to go from attack to defence when good players get an opportunity.
HALF TIME: WANNEROO 14 – ASSOCIATES 0
This was the best forty minutes Wanneroo have played this season. During the half time huddle, coach’s Ian Armitage and Lofty Freeman congratulated their players and said their performance encapsulated everything they had been striving for in training. They also said Wanneroo’s outstanding play had made Associates look ordinary, but stressed they were a good side who should not be underestimated. They urged the team to concentrate and maintain the high standards they had just set.
SECOND HALF
The second half started with Wanneroo pressuring Soaks into conceding consecutive line outs. From their second line, Luke gave a ball off the top that Brent sent out to Ethan. He took it on and set it up for his forwards who drove it on for six phases, until the ref penalised the Dogs for holding on in the ruck. Soaks kicked for touch but lost their line out ball to the Dogs who attacked up the right wing before giving the ball to Campbell. He kicked it into the visitor’s corner and Wanneroo’s chasers hustled the ball catcher into another hurried clearance.
Luke tapped the subsequent line out ball and the backs hit it up. Beats took over, carried strongly and his forward momentum was maintained by Setefano, then the rest of the pack. They broke through Soaks defence and Captain King planted the ball over the line for the third Wanneroo try. Jordan’s kick was on target
WANNEROO 21 – ASSOCIATES 0
The stage was set for a big finish and a high score to the Roo Dogs. After the drop out, Soaks put a high ball up for their chasers. It was well contested by Darcey Hinkley, but he was outnumbered and Soaks got possession. They made a probing run up their right wing but rock-solid defence forced them to switch the direction of their attack to the midfield. Darcey chopped their lock down, but he still got the ball away to his left wing. When the winger failed to break through, the ref brought play back for an earlier infringement by Wanneroo. Soaks took the line out option and kicked the ball to Wanneroo’s five metre line. They used their throw in to try and crash through the centres but got repulsed. Undeterred, they hit the ball up for another three phases and, for the first time in the game, they breached Wanneroo’s tackle line to score a converted try.
WANNEROO 21 – ASSOCIATES 7
Wanneroo sent a long drop out to the corner and chased it up, forcing Soaks to kick for touch. The Dogs used their line throw well, with Campbell feeding replacement Sitaleki Timani on the charge. He was backed up by Kingy who laid the ball back giving Beats, and then Caleb Karangaroa, a chance to make ground. When Caleb was held Ethan took possession, cut inside and made a break that caught Soaks napping. He put the ball behind the defence for Caleb to chased and he only just failed to score.
Wanneroo continued to attack and Associates refused to yield. It was becoming an absorbing contest. Soaks kicked for touch, Wanneroo took a quick throw and Scott and Darcey linked up to make good yards before a fast ball went out to Jordan. Soaks saw immediately that he was dangerous and their defence got back, so Jordan grubbered the ball behind them and chased it. The ball got knocked on in the contest and Soaks breathed easy.
Some good work by the greens went unrewarded but eventually earned them a penalty. Their touch finder missed and Soaks took a chance and ran the ball wide. Finding no way through, they switched play inside for another go. They appeared to be bottled up by the Dogs, until their No 8 made a sudden break down the wing. He got held but Soaks got quick support got to him, gave clean ball out and they had sufficient numbers to score near the posts. The try was converted.
WANNEROO 21 – ASSOCIATES 14
Wanneroo sent another long drop out to Soaks corner. A great chase by Juddy forced the catcher into a poor misguided kick. Wanneroo took possession Ethan attacked, followed by Kingy and then Luke who all carried the ball into contact. Then the ref saw a misdemeanour and pinged Wanneroo.
Soaks took the line out option and gave fast ball to their centre who tried to get past Ethan. Bad mistake, but he managed to get the ball back to his support. Soaks crashed it up for three phases before making a break into the green 22. They scored, despite a wonderful last gasp tackle by replacement Bayce Leatherby. The conversion was good and unbelievably Soaks were on even terms.
WANNEROO 21 – ASSOCIATES 21
The drop out ball went to Soaks corner where it was immediately returned to the waiting Jordan. He took it on before releasing it to his teammates who worked the sideline well. After a couple of phases, Jordan got his hands on the ball again and made another run that ruptured Soaks tackle line. He looked for support and there was Ethan, right on his shoulder. Ethan scored & Jordan kicked the conversion.
WANNEROO 28 – ASSOCIATES 21
After the drop out, Soaks attacked from a line out. They changed their point of attack a couple of times but were unable to break through. Wanneroo got a line out on the Gold 22 where Luke took the ball and set a drive. Soaks killed the ball to prevent the try and Wanneroo got a penalty that Jordan stroked over the posts.
WANNEROO 31 – ASSOCIATES 21
Soaks were resilient and got a line out on their own 22. Their forwards gave quick ball to their scrum half and he made a scintillating break, that incorporated an outrageous dummy, to score a very good individual try. The conversion was successful
WANNEROO 31 – ASSOCIATES 28
Soaks were on a high and prepared to run anything, hit anything and chase anything. They earned a penalty at a breakdown on the 22 and kicked for a line out on the 10 metre line. Wanneroo came agonisingly close to stealing the ball but got penalised for interference and the ref awarded a scrum feed to Soaks.
The visitors ran the scrum ball and tried to bully their way to the try line, but Wanneroo dug deep and hit hard. It became a dockyard brawl with both sides in do or die mode, until Soaks broke the deadlock. They got the ball with good numbers and went for the try line. Justin made a valiant attempt that stopped the ball carrier on the line, but Soaks still crashed over for a try. The ref blew for no side after the conversion.
FINAL SCORE: WANNEROO 31 – ASSOCIATES 28
I don’t know what to say about this game, so probably best to make no comment.
The players and coaching staff will work it out together.
Bill Watt