Rugby union was one of many sports affected by recent COVID-19 cases in the Hunter Valley and Armidale at the weekend as all Central North Rugby Union games scheduled for round 17 on Saturday were postponed except for the Blue Boars’ away games at Gunnedah.
While the Narrabri Rugby Club first XV went down 24-22 against the Red Devils after conceding a late penalty goal, and the Tamworth Pirates received five points for the bye, all other sides have been forced to wait to play their round 17 games.
Central North Rugby Union issued an announcement on Sunday following a meeting with its executive and the club presidents which clarified its stance on how the season would progress.
CNRU advised that round 18, scheduled for this Saturday, would proceed as normal and that the postponed round 17 matches would be played a week later on August 21.
That day would have otherwise been when the CNRU minor semi-finals would have been held, but they were rescheduled for Saturday, August 28, at the same venue as the major semi-finals.
The preliminary and grand final dates remained scheduled for September 4 and 11 respectively.
CNRU also announced that should any local government area within the competition be placed into lockdown, the CNRU executive would temporarily suspend all grades.
That will now be the case after Tamworth was placed in lockdown from yesterday at 5pm until Tuesday, August 16.
In the event of a one-week lockdown, which is the current situation, the CNRU executive said that the competition would be paused and all fixtures would be delayed one week.
The adjusted order of fixtures would remain the same with the grand final to be played on Saturday, September 18.
Should the lockdown last two weeks, the competition will remain paused and all fixtures will be delayed two weeks. Again, the adjusted order of fixtures would remain the same with the grand final to be played on Saturday, September 25.
If the lockdown lasts three or more weeks, the season would remain on hold and a zone meeting would be held with clubs to work out a way forward.
The CNRU executive stressed that at all times, compliance with COVID-19 restrictions and the safety of its communities is the priority but with the desire to see a result delivered in Central North in 2021.
At Gunnedah on Saturday, Narrabri trailed from the fourth minute until the 76th when a Michael Cain penalty kick put the visitors ahead 22-21 with four minutes left to play.
The Blue Boars defended desperately with less than a minute remaining on the clock, however, they conceded
a penalty and Gunnedah scored a three-pointer to win the match 24-22.
Earlier in the contest, both sides scored three tries each. Gunnedah converted all three while Narrabri missed one of its conversions.
The Blue Boars earned a bonus point after losing by a margin of fewer than eight points. That, and the fact it denied the Red Devils from earning a bonus point of its own, kept the Narrabri men in the minor premiership hunt.
The second-placed Blue Boars are now five points behind Gunnedah with a game to go.
Should Gunnedah lose at Moree in round 18 against the Bulls and not earn a bonus point, Narrabri would claim first place with a bonus point victory at home against Barraba.
If those two results occur, both Narrabri and Gunnedah would finish the regular season locked on 70 points. They would both have 12 wins each which would mean the second tie-breaker, for and against difference, would be used which would see Narrabri prevail.
In round 17, it took the Red Devils less than five minutes to open the scoring when fullback James Perrett went over off the back of a slick move down the left edge by the hosts.
He then kicked his side into a 7-0 lead after he converted his own try.
Gunnedah enjoyed more success down their left edge on the 20-minute mark when winger Darrell Morrison dived over to score after his outside centre Jamie Mitchell made a storming run before passing to his wide man.
Perrett then kicked the conversion
from the sideline to make the score 14-0.
The Blue Boars finally got on the scoreboard in the 39th minute when Mitch Wheaton scooped the ball up out of the back of the ruck and dived over from close range for his fourth try of the season
Henri Knight reduced Narrabri’s deficit to seven points with a conversion as the visitors went into half-time trailing 14-7.
That became 14-12 in the 52nd minute after Will Turner and Linton Grumley combined superbly for Narrabri’s second try.
The Blue Boars won a penalty and kicked for touch, earning themselves a lineout inside their attacking 22-metre zone on the left side of the field. Turner threw in a short lineout to Grumley who charged down the left sideline before passing to a supporting Turner who finished off the play he started with the Blue Boars’ second try of the day.
The Red Devils regained possession after winning a contest for the ball from the kick-off and 90 seconds later they were in for their third try which was scored by Mitchell and converted by Perrett to make the score 21-12.
Narrabri got themselves back within two points of the Red Devils when Cain converted a Will McDonnell try in the 65th minute which made the score 21-19.
That try was scored after the Red Devils failed to throw a lineout in straight, deep in their own half, and Narrabri camped itself on Gunnedah’s line after the ensuing scrum. The home side survived a Blue Boars onslaught for two minutes but the pressure proved to be too much to overcome and McDonnell forced his way over.
Narrabri then won and converted a penalty late in the game as Cain booted the Blue Boars into a 22-21 lead.
However, Gunnedah would have the final say 45 minutes after the second stanza kicked off when they won a penalty and Perrett held his nerve to kick the winning three-pointer. He and his side celebrated a 24-22 win, one that has most likely secured the minor premiership for the Gunnedah first XV.
To order photos from this page click here
