Winter may have just arrived but the Central North Rugby Union season is starting to heat up as the Narrabri Blue Boars and the Gunnedah Red Devils set up a highly-anticipated top-of-the-table clash in the women’s tens competition.
However, it is on hold for a week as the competition breaks for the June long weekend.
Narrabri and Gunnedah are ranked first and second on 39 points each at the end of round eight and they will go head-to-head in round nine on Saturday, June 17, both determined to lead the way going into the second half of the 18-round season.
The Blue Boars entered round eight on Saturday leading the way at the top and they continued that run with a sixth victory in as many matches in the 2023 season when they downed last year’s premiers.
While it was their lowest winning margin of the season and the fewest points they have scored in a game this year, it was the Narrabri girls’ best win yet as they beat the defending champs, Tamworth Pirates, 14-7 away from home.
The grand final rematch was played at Chillingworth Oval in Tamworth, where the Blue Boars were beaten 42-17 by the Pirates the last time they met at the venue.
The Narrabri side went into the match having lost all four of its most recent encounters against the Pirates, however, the visitors shrugged that aside and defended their way to a brilliant seven-point victory.
The Blue Boars scored first when April Smith dived over for a try in the ninth minute after Abbey Anderson broke the line inside her own half and made a charging 60-metre run up the field before offloading to Smith close to the tryline.
Captain Toni Gale then added the extra two points with a successful conversion as the Blue Boars took a 7-0 lead into the first break.
The score remained that way at both the half-time and three-quarter-time breaks after neither side found points in the second or third quarters.
The hosts finally hit back with about five minutes to go with a converted try scored by Phebe McNamara, but the determined Narrabri Blue Boars side responded almost instantly as Cassidy Morley scored for the visitors just 30 seconds after the kick-off. The Blue Boars received that restart and kicked up-field before winning the ball back and creating pressure that led to Morley going over. Gale converted to make the score 14-7, which was the way it remained after a nervous final two minutes.
Narrabri Rugby Club’s women’s 10s co-captain and co-coach Peta Cox watched the game from the sideline after suffering a knee injury in the Blue Boars’ 83-0 win against Inverell a week earlier.
She told The Courier that she could not have been any prouder of her side.
“The girls played so well. I’m so proud of all of them,” Cox said.
“The defence and patience that we showed in the game was the best we’ve ever done.
“We were all connected.
“We had two key focuses for the game, which were connection and communication.
“Everyone on the field, no matter who came on or off, did well to keep the blue wall strong for the whole 40 minutes.
“They only got through us once to score a try and that was in the last quarter. We held them out for over 30 minutes and that’s a credit to the way we defended; the low tackles and the support that we gave each other in our defensive line.”
Fellow co-coach and Narrabri Rugby Club president Mick Coffey was also quite proud of his team.
“I’ve had a couple of people tell me since that it was the best game of women’s rugby in the Central North competition since it started due to the standard, the skill level and the execution,” he said.
“It’s good for the Narrabri club to be associated with a title like that and it’s even better that we won it.
“I’m really proud.”
Cox said that although the Blue Boars dropped a point for the first time this season as they did not earn a bonus point, it was still their best win of the year and was one that gave them a significant confidence boost.
“It’s definitely our biggest win of the year, even though the score was so low,” she said.
“It was such a big mental win for us.
“The girls all knew it was going to be a tough game. It was a grand final rematch and that’s always going to be one of the harder games, especially being against Pirates.
“For us to go there and hold them out the way we did was a massive achievement, both physically and mentally, for everyone on that field.
“After everything our team has been through in the last 12 months, to get that win was just amazing.”
Cox said that Esta Kalatzis had a brilliant game playing out of position in the front row, and she thought that fellow props Abbey Anderson and Belle McClelland played outstandingly.
All three of those players are new to the club in 2023 and have all made a positive impact on their new team.
Narrabri’s round nine opponent, Gunnedah, had a bye in round eight and earned five competition points.
Like Narrabri, the Red Devils have won all six of their games in 2023 and have only dropped one point to sit on 39 of a possible 40 points.
Pirates dropped to fourth following their loss on Saturday after they were overtaken by the Moree Bulls, which won against Quirindi by forfeit.
The other women’s tens game that was played on Saturday saw Scone Brumbies score a 41-5 away victory against Barraba Rams, while Inverell sat out with a bye.
The teams ranked fifth to eighth, respectively, on the ladder after round eight are Scone, Barraba, Inverell and Quirindi.
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