Narrabri Touch Inc teams returned to the field on Monday for the second last games of the calendar year following a cancelled round the previous Monday.
Round seven games, scheduled for Monday, November 30, were called off due to extreme heat, then attack was the theme of the night in round eight when 120 tries were scored across the 11 matches.
Almost half, 58 to be exact, were scored in the five men’s matches which were all close games with the exception of one. The only blowout saw Win Or Booze outscore DTA Lumberjacks 13-3. In the other games, Gee Bangers edged out Damien Chiplin Plumbing 5-4, Ballbusters downed Mowley’s Maniacs 6-4, Stylies defeated Cougars 8-6, and Grumley Builders beat Platform X Studio 8-5.
The other 62 tries in round eight were scored across the six ladies’ games. In that division, the closest game saw Hounddogs down The Rippers 6-2. In the other matches, Agies Ladies outscored Phoenix Two390 12-0, BPR Tourist beat RSL Roulettes 8-2, Xtra defeated OneDay Gals 10-0, Specialised Civil downed Blue Birds 8-1, and Redbacks beat The Emasculators 8-1.
Win Or Booze made it back-to-back wins for the second time this season on Monday with a 13-3 victory which was its fourth win in seven matches. There were eight different tryscorers for the side in that match. Jess O’Neil and Harry Pattison both scored hat-tricks, Caleb McDonald bagged a double and Cooper Brayshaw, Aliks Davis, Connor Hill, Keegan Richardson and Lachlan Trindall crossed once each. DTA Lumberjacks’ tries were scored by James Albert, who went over twice, and Ben Watson.
After starting its season with three-straight losses, Ballbusters has now won three of its last four matches after defeating Mowley’s Maniacs 6-4 in round eight. Jimmy Ward scored a hat-trick in the side’s win, Ken Nolan bagged a double and Dean Hancock scored the other. Two of Mowley’s Maniacs’ four tries were scored by Scott Connole and the other two were shared between Clifford Toomey Junior and Matt Walters.
Gee Bangers beat Damien Chiplin Plumbing 5-4 in the closest game of the round. The win was Gee Bangers’ sixth in seven matches this season and its fourth in a row. The side’s five tries were scored by Michael Cain, Damon Gleeson, Jake Rumsby, James Thomas and Cameron Yates. Jakeb Nipperess bagged a double for Damien Chiplin Plumbing, while Blake Hilderson and Jock Small chipped in with one each.
First-placed Grumley Builders scored its seventh win of the campaign to keep its undefeated streak alive. It handed Platform X Studio its second loss of the season with an 8-5 victory. Connor Duncan and Jack Maunder both bagged doubles for the ladder leaders, while Ethan Brown, Jydon Hill, Tom Nolan and Luke Tuckey crossed for one each. Platform X Studio’s Brenton Cochrane went over twice for his team, while the other three tries were shared between Nathan Dicks, Gus Macrae and Brendon Warnock. The loss ended a five-game win streak for Platform X Studio.
In the other men’s game, Stylies secured its second win of the season when it defeated Cougars 6-4. Stylies’ Lachlan Ford and Danny Laws scored two tries each and the other four were claimed by Paul Bushby, Luke Flood, Taylor Gordon and Aaron Stoltenberg. For Cougars, Jordan Harvey and Jaylen Shapley bagged doubles while Chris Clark and Braedon Mason-Kelly went over once each.
The biggest win of the round was scored in one of the first ladies’ matches. It saw Agies Ladies score its seventh straight win with a 12-0 victory against Phoenix Two390 to remain on top of the table. Bella Cruickshank scored five of her side’s tries, Alisha Conomos and Bree Kennedy both bagged doubles and Matilda Currey and Tashanny Clark scored a try each. Agies Ladies has now scored 95 tries in seven games while conceding just six.
Xtra also made it seven wins from as many matches with a 10-0 win against OneDay Gals on Monday. Xtra’s Rosie Maunder scored four tries, teammates Georgia Rogan and Emma Cain went over twice each and Ellen John and Ashtine Nott crossed once each. Xtra is currently third and trails the competition’s other undefeated side by for and against difference.
That team is Specialised Civil which also won its seventh straight game in round eight when it downed Blue Birds 8-1. Jessie Schwager scored a hat-trick for the winning side, Abby McClure and Gerri Cruickshank both bagged doubles and Natalia Smith scored the other try. Blue Birds’ try was claimed by Lidia McCauley.
Another round eight winner, Redbacks, climbed from fifth to fourth on the ladder with an 8-1 victory against The Emasculators. Redbacks duo Zoe Campbell and Asher Kelly scored two tries each, while teammates Tori Allison, Georgie Hancock, Hayley Lang and Tianne Parker shared the other four. The Emasculators’ try was scored by Sharne Neilson.
BPR-Tourist Hotel bounced back from three straight losses in style on Monday. Its previous two victories were back-to-back wins in rounds two and three, then it returned to winning ways by downing RSL Roulettes 8-2 in round eight. Lisa Macrae scored a hat-trick for the winning side, Rebecca Artis bagged a double and Heidi Campbell, Mary Fielder and Michelle O’Connor all scored a try each. RSL Roulettes’ two tries were claimed by Donna McKinstry and Brittany Young.
In the other ladies’ match, Hounddogs beat The Rippers 6-2. In Hounddogs’ fourth win in seven matches, Carly Baxter scored a hat-tick and Caitlyn Dewar, Emma Redfern and Vanessa Smallwood crossed once each. The Rippers’ two tries were scored by Mia Stewart and Zoe Watkins.
Draw for round nine on Monday, December 14, is as follows:
6pm: Canteen duty – Lorraine Scott.
Field one – Grumley Builders v Cougars (Wayne Nott, Cameron Yates), field two – Xtra v Specialised Civil (Mary Fielder, Emily McFetridge), field three – Platform X Studio v Ballbusters (Peter Quirk, Scott Purcell), field four – OneDay Gals v Redbacks (Sophie Donatini, Joan O’Neill), field five – Stylies v Win or Booze (Kaleb Mowle, Ty Baker), field six – Bluebirds v Agies Ladies (Maddie Russell, Ben Redfern).
6.40pm: Canteen duty – Tracy Warren.
Field one – The Emasculators v BPR-Tourist Hotel (Abby McClure, Makayla Elford), field two – Mowley’s Maniacs v GeeBangers (Brendan Warnock, Scott Rickard), field three – Phoenix2390 v Hounddogs (Tianne Parker, Amy Baguley), field four – DTA Lumberjacks v Damien Chiplin Plumbing (Linton Grumley, Keegan Richardson), field five – RSL Roulettes v The Rippers (Jess Craig, Cathy Conomos).
