The finals series of Narrabri Touch’s men’s A-grade season got underway at Cooma Oval on Monday evening and the four teams that played in those games combined to produce a pair of entertaining contests.
The qualifying final was up first as the second-placed side Win Or Booze took on third-placed team Lations for a chance to take on minor premiers Grumley Builders in the November 28 major semi-final.
Lations prevailed 5-4 in that match after Declan Rooney scored a try just before the siren sounded.
The score was locked at 4-all before that, and Win Or Booze did not have a chance to equalise as the full-time whistle blew before the trailing team could make it back to halfway to get the game back underway.
It was a close contest throughout, which was 2-all at the midway point after Win Or Booze’s Aliks Davis and Cooper Brayshaw went over for their team, and Lations’ Clifford Toomey Junior and Chris Condran crossed for theirs.
Brenton Cochrane made the score 3-2 to Lations following an explosive dummy and line break close to the line before Brayshaw went over for his second try to level the score up at 3-all.
Jaylan Sharpley was next to score as his try edged Lations back in front 4-3, but Brayshaw equalised again when he scored the third try of his hat-trick.
Lations had the final say when Rooney scored the winner just before full time.
The other finals match played on Monday evening was an elimination final, which saw Wilga Pelicans knock Gee Bangers out of the A-grade men’s competition. The Pelicans won that match 7-5 to join Win Or Booze in the November 28 minor semi-final.
Sid Harvey crossed for a hat-trick for the Wilga side, and the other four tries were shared between Craig Gleeson, Frazer Penberthy, Brendon Warnock and Cruz Ryan. Hayden Bell bagged a double for Gee Bangers, and his teammates Cameron Yates, Nathan Nott and Jock Small went over for their side’s other three tries.
The men’s B-grade teams and ladies’ A-grade and B-grade sides all played non-competitive matches on Monday evening. Those were their final hitouts ahead of this Monday’s semi-finals.
A-grade ladies minor premiers Agies Ladies won their match 9-3 against Specialised Quarries and Concrete, but the other A-grade ladies teams did not play after the Wilga Westies forfeited against SPA Redbacks.
B-grade ladies’ teams Blue Birds and CBRE were victorious in their games. Blue Birds beat Touch’n’go 6-0, and CBRE edged out Hounddogs 2-1.
One of the B-grade men’s games was a close contest, just like the A-grade finals matches, as DTA Treated Timber Lumberjacks beat Ballbusters 8-7. The other B-grade men’s winner on Monday was Cougars, which defeated NFC 9-2.
The semi-final fixtures and referee appointments for Monday, November 28, are as follows:
6pm:
Field one – A-grade men’s qualifier – Grumley Builders v Lations (referees – Nathan Dicks, Jakeb Nipperess and Craig Gleeson); field two – A-grade ladies’ elimination – Specialised Quarries & Concrete v Wilga Westies (referees – Terrence Duncan and Alisha Conomos); field three – B-grade men’s elimination – Ballbusters v NFC (referees – Scott Purcell and David Toomey); field four – B-grade ladies’ qualifier – CBRE v Blue Birds (referees – Brendon Warnock, Jess McFetridge and Wayne Nott).
6.35pm
Field one – A-grade men’s elimination – Win or Booze v Wilga Pelicans (referees – Tom Nolan, Clifford Toomey Jnr and Linton Grumley); field two – A-grade ladies’ qualifier – Agies v SPA Redbacks (referees – Kenny Nolan, Natalia Smith and Abby McClure); field three – B-grade men’s qualifier – DTA Treated Timber Lumberjacks v Cougars (referees – Brett Allison and Jydon Hill); field four – B-grade ladies’ elimination – Hounddogs v Touch’n’Go (referees – Emily Flood, Mereka Gleeson and Kristie Toomey).
