Round 20 Details
MATCH RESULTS: August 5/6 2006
Tweed Heads Seagulls 32 (Trent Iselin 2, Michael Keating, Jay Mariconte, James Rix, Harry Witt tries, Michael Keating 4 goals) def Burleigh Bears 20 (Dominic Devitt 2, Oscar Diekas, Matt Host tries, Marty Paulson 2 goals)
IN BRIEF:
A tremendous first half from the home side gave them a 26-0 lead at the break, and despite a spirited comeback from the Burleigh side, Tweed Heads held on to win 32-20 and keep their finals hopes alive.
Western Districts Panthers 10 (Brendan Altadonna, Dylan Castle tries, Tino Vaasa goal) def Ipswich Jets 4 (Nigel Naawi try)
IN BRIEF:
Western Districts performed well in the first half to take a 10-0 lead to the break, and despite having numerous opportunities the Jets could not bridge the gap, the only points of the second half being a try to Nigel Naawi to leave the final score at 10-4 to the home side. Mananui Te Heu Heu was sent off late in the second half to add to Ipswich's woes.
MATCH OF THE ROUND: Aspley Devils 44 (Jacob Fauid 3, Matthew Baird 2, Chris Bella, Troyden Edwards, Michael Tierney tries, Jacob Fauid 6 goals) def Norths Devils 10 (David Kramer, Israel Folau tries, Luke Samoa goal)
FULL MATCH REPORT (From the WEBMASTER):.
A five star performance from Jacob Fauid led Aspley to a 44-10 win over the competition leaders Norths at Kirby Park, to out Aspley back in the top 5 for the first time since mid-season. Aspley ran into a stiff breeze in the first half, but were gifted two tries from Norths mistakes in the first five minutes, the first when a scrunm win saw Charlie Fetoia put Chris Bella over in the corner, and the second when a Troyden Edwards grubber was dropped and Matt Baird scored the simplest of tries. Norths steadied and looked certaon to score in the 15th minute, but what would have been the last pass for a try was plucked out of the air by Jacob Fauid who ran 95 metres to score and extend Aspley's lead to 14-0. The rest of the half however belonged to the visitors, with firstly David Kramer crossing after a good break from Jay Aston and then Israel Folau crossing in the corner from a Sika Manu offload. Only desperate Aspley defence kept Norths out on at least three more occasions before half-time but they could not finish and Aspley went to the break leading 14-10.
The second half began in exactly the same fashion as the first with a Norths mistake resulting in an Aspley try when Jacob Fauid threw a beautiful wide ball to Matt Baird who crossed in the corner. With Fauid using the srong tail wind well, Norths were pinned inside their own territory and on the back of another mistake Jacob Fauid recovered his own grubber to score and extend Aspley's lead to 14 points with 25 minutes remaining. Five minutes later another Fauid grubber saw Aspley local Mick Tierney grab hos first try of the season, and when Fauid decided to run instead of kick on the fifth tackle with 15 minutes remaining, he easily grabbed his hat-trick and Aspley led 36-10. Norths had a number of opportunities in the next 10 minutes, but Aspley's defence held strong, and it was the home side who finished the better with Troyden Edwards scoring off a Brynjar Raggnarsson offload, before a Fauid penalty goal after full time saw the final score 44-10.
Fauid was clearly the outstanding player on the field, contributing 24 points from 3 tries and 6 goals, as well as dominating play with a great kicking game. Centres Charlie Fetoia and Troyden Edwards shone as well, with makeshift fullback Chris Bella also going well, and Matt Baird deserving his double. In the forwards Kieron Lander was outstanding, although he was put on report early in the first half for a dangerous throw, and he was well supported by Nathan Strudwick and Zac Hook. For Norths, Sika Manu caused plenty of problems, whilst backrowers Aiden Guerra and Jay Aston also went well. Norths understrength backs were certainly out of sorts, and certainly missed the likes of Will Chambers, Daniel Issac and Luke Capewell.
STATS: Pens: Aspley 7 - 6; Scrums: 6 - 6; Comp.Rate: Aspley 23/34, Norths 18/29
Redcliffe Dolphins 28 (David Hala 2, Angus Cameron, Matt Handcock, Tim Benson tries, Phil Daisy 4 goals) def Sunshine Coast Falcons 22 (Chris McGill, Anthony Delaivuna, Todd Wilson, Steve McPhee tries, Anthony Delaivuna 3 goals)
IN BRIEF:
Despite leading all the way, Redcliffe struggled to put the bottom side away and had to defend desperately for the last 10 minutes to stop the home side drawing level. The Dolphins led by a converted try at the break 18-12, and eventually won by this margin 28-22 to move to the competition lead.
Wynnum-Manly Seagulls 42 (Matt Smith 2, Luke Menhinnitt, Ben Cronin, Adam Mansey, Josef McLean, Michael Chaplain tries, Luke Menhinnitt 7 goals) def Souths-Logan Magpies 38 (Chris Sandow 3, Geoffrey Hunt, Sam Setu, Antonio Winterstein, Mitchell Muir tries, Mace Laulu Togagae 5 goals)
IN BRIEF:
A sensational game between two teams desperate to maintain their spot in the top 5. It was neck and neck all day with the Magpies taking a 22-18 lead at half-time. On the back of a hat-trick to Chris Sandow, Souths still led by 2 points with 5 minutes to go but a late converted try to the Seagulls gave them a critical 42-38 victory.
MATCH PREVIEWS: July 29/30 2006
Plenty of "derby" games this week, and a couple of games that will go a long way to finalising the top 5!
Souths-Logan Magpies v Wynnum Manly Seagulls Sat 11:45am Brandon Park
Previous Game: Wynnum Manly 30 def Souths-Logan 26
WIth Aspley and Tweed breathing down their necks, the winner of this game will gain some breathing space in the race for the top 5 whilst the loser's spot in the fimals will be well and truly under threat. Both teams suffered defeat last weekend, Wynnum to Aspley after a close first half, and Souths to the biggest score of the season against Redcliffe. It will be interesting to see if the Magpies drop some Colts (Mase Laulu, Chris Sandow, Tow Faaee) back form Qld Cup now that they are out of finals contention to try to win this one. The Magpies erratic form, with or without their "stars" makes this one almost impossible to tip. "THE COMPUTER" tips Souths-Logan by 6.
Sunshine Coast Falcons v Redcliffe Dolphins Sat 3.00pm Quad Park
Previous Game: Redcliffe 25 def Sunshine Coast 24
Sunshine Coast all but pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the season in the first round leading by 6 points with 5 minutes remaining before an intercept try and late field goal cost them the match. They pushed Easts all the way last week, whilst Redcliffe were near faultless in running up 80 points against the Magpies. A win here is a must if Redcliffe are to be any chance of snatching the minor premiership from Norths. "THE COMPUTER" tips Redcliffe by 24.
MATCH OF THE ROUND: Aspley Devils v Norths Devils Sat 3:30pm Kirby Park
Previous Game: Aspley 39 def Norths 22
Aspley turned on one of their best displays of the season in the first round to inflict one of Norths' three losses this season. This really is a crunch match for Aspley with a win meaning they would have the ability to determine their own fate as far as the finals are concerned, whilst a loss would mean they would have to rely on other results falling their way even if they won their last two matches. A Norths win would almost certainly wrap up the minor premiership keeping them in front of Redcliffe with a game in hand. This should be an absolute ripper. "THE COMPUTER" tips Aspley by 6.
Western District Panthers v Ipswich Jets Sat 4.00pm Kev McKell Oval
Previous Game: Western Districts 28 def Ipswich 24
These two teams played out a thriller in the first round and this should be no different. Ipswich led Norths well into the second half last week, whilst Western Districts come off a bye after their stylish win over Tweed Heads the week before. Should be another close one. "THE COMPUTER" tips Western Districts by 4.
Tweed Heads Seagulls v Burleigh Bears 11.45am at Piggabeen
Previous Game:Tweed Heads 26 def Burleigh 10
The Gold Coast derby is critical to Tweed Heads with a win a must if they are to keep alive their faint hope of a semi-final berth. Tweed bounced back from a disappointing loss to Westernd Districts 2 weeks ago to cause an upset against semi-s bound Easts, whilst Burleigh beat Sunshine Coast last week after a heart-breaking two point loss to Souths-Logan the week before that snuffed out their finals hopes. Tweed may just have a bit much to play for in this one for the travelling Bears. "THE COMPUTER" tips Tweed Heads by 6.
East Tigers BYE
