Panthers win ladies’ league tag thriller against Roos

Wee Waa Panthers registered a nail-biting ladies’ league tag victory to kick off proceedings at Jubilee Oval in style on Saturday as they defeated a fast-finishing Boggabri Kangaroos by two points.

The two teams scored two tries each during either side of the half-time break, but a second-half conversion scored by Wee Waa was the difference in the end as the Panthers prevailed 18-16 in round eight of the Group 4 Rugby League campaign.

Boggabri were searching for their first win of the season and were in the contest for the full 50 minutes, but fell just short of earning a draw after they missed a late conversion following a try with just over a minute remaining.

Their performance and the result highlighted just how far they have come this season though, given they were beaten 32-0 at Cook Oval by the Panthers earlier in the year.

The victory was Wee Waa’s second of the season and also saw them show significant signs of improvement.

They had not scored a point since they last beat Boggabri following four shutout losses and a bye, and some of their attacking plays and the tries they scored indicated that a strong second half of the season could be on the cards.

Wee Waa’s coach Kimberley Laurie told The Courier she thought both sides played well and combined for an entertaining match on what was a special day for them both, being the second matchday of the Jeremey JT Toomey Memorial Cup.

“It was a really good game on both ends. Both of us really fought hard for the win,” Laurie said.

“It was a special day. There was a lot of passion in all grades for the cup. JT was such an important man and we all miss him so much, so it was good to play in honour of him.

“The Boggi girls have always been a good team, and they definitely put up a good game.

“I felt pretty comfortable through the game. It was kind of tit-for-tat the whole time, then when Boggi scored that last try I was thinking it was going to be a draw, but she was unlucky to miss the goal.

“It was really good to see different players on our team score tries. They were really good ones too. Some of them shocked me.

“All of the girls deserve credit for all their efforts. It was a good team effort. Everyone did their part, and I couldn’t be more proud of the girls, to be honest.

“Week in and week out, we’ve had heaps of improvement in all the girls, especially the ones who have just started playing this year.

“I think we can achieve so much. We just have to keep putting in the effort each week and we’ll see where it goes for us.”

It was Wee Waa that struck first in the fourth minute when Samantha Marchant crossed for the first try of the contest. The away side had a kick charged down on the halfway line and it was collected by Marchant near the right sideline before she beat five defenders during a sensational 50-metre run to score a few metres in from touch.

Isabella Suckling then made it 8-0 less than five minutes later when she charged onto a bouncing ball down the left edge after a Kristie Toomey kick had hit the deck before storming through a hole and grounding before Belle Byrne could secure her tag.

Boggabri then hit back twice before half-time to lock the score up at 8-all at the break, and it was the Stewart sisters Ruby and Mia who combined to put the points on the board.

Ruby went over for the Kangaroos’ first try of the game to make the score 8-4 with seven minutes left to play in the 25-minute half. Ashlyn Summers had gotten the hosts in good field position after she launched a bomb high into the air that Wee Waa dropped on their own 10-metre line, and Ruby then charged over off the back of a quick tap after Wee Waa had given away a penalty during the ensuing set.

Mia then crossed in the right corner with two minutes remaining after the hosts had played the ball one metre out from the tryline in the centre of the field before Caitlyn Dewar went right out of dummy half and the ball went through the hands of Rya Knox and Menzie-Baker Harvey, who spun it out wide to the try-scorer.

Both sides were determined to start fastest in the second stanza and it was Wee Waa that managed to do so. The Panthers did have to defend an early set on their line after conceding two quick penalties, but they struck when they got possession back as Alisha Conomos carved up Boggabri through the middle and ran 90 metres to score her side’s third.

Ashley Hanslow then slotted the conversion, adding two points that would later decide the game.

Boggabri made the score 14-12 in the 37th minute when Byrne charged onto an Ashlee Haire short ball down the left edge and cruised past several defenders on her way to the tryline, but Wee Waa hit back less than three minutes later when Matilda Currey broke the line down the left edge and ran 50 metres to dive over and make the score 18-12 with 10 minutes left to play.

The hosts refused to give up and pushed hard to find an equaliser, and they managed to cross for their fourth try with just over a minute remaining in the contest.

It was Rya Knox who scored off the back of a tap restart after Boggabri had won a penalty and kicked for touch, and she went over about 10 metres outside the left upright.

Telisha Hilderson stepped up to take the conversion and missed to the right, and that was the final kick of the contest, with the siren sounding before the Panthers could kick off as the Wee Waa ladies held on to win by two points.

Boggabri went on to win the next two games as the Roos outscored the Panthers 70-10 in reserve grade and 80-20 in first grade. Both of those games were cut short due to the mercy rule.

Boggabri and Wee Waa are both at home this weekend in round nine, with the Kangaroos to welcome the Dungowan Cowboys to Jubilee Oval on Saturday and the Panthers to host Werris Creek Magpies at Cook Oval on Sunday.