Only two teams remain undefeated on top of the Toowoomba Rugby League competition after Valleys' big win over defending premiers, Pittsworth yesterday.
It sets up for an interesting match this weekend as the undefeated Dalby Diehards take on the Danes, who are hungry for revenge following the loss.
Wattles Warriors v Brothers Leprechauns
The injury-riddled Wattles accounted for a lacklustre Brothers side at Platz Oval on Saturday night, leading 16-6 at halftime and running away with the match in the second half.
The Wattles have been impressive without key players and will be happy with their performance against a competitive Brothers outfit.
A GRADE: Wattles 44 (Ryan Duggan 2 Jamie Abbas 2, Michael Pearson, Jackson Green, Braydon Wilson, Ty Gardner, James Johnson tries; Ryan Duggan 4 goals) defeated Brothers 6 (Mitchell Betros try; Jaren Bender goal)
RESERVE GRADE: Brothers 22 defeated Wattles 14
UNDER 18: Brothers 44 defeated Wattles 12
Southern Suburbs Tigers v Dalby Diehards
As the fog settled in at Clive Berghofer Stadium, everyone including the supporters had just finished familiarising themselves with identifying the humans on the field … that was until more fog poured in.
However, the poor conditions did not deter the quality of this game.
Souths completed 16 from 16 sets in the first half, but found themselves behind at halftime 18-12.
The Tigers led 12-6 after 30 minutes, but tries to Zac Morris and a match-turning try on the halftime hooter to Mitchell Taylor turned the tide for the Diehards.
In the second half, the match remained a high quality affair with Souths having most possession, but they could not crack the TRL’s best defensive team until the 63rd minute when Souths hooker Tyrell McCullough scored to make it 18-18.
Just after Souths had spent a good amount of time to finally get a try, the Diehards scored courtesy of Corey Blades to make the score 22-18.
It was one of not many opportunities Dalby took in the second half.
The amazing part was the low mistake rate in slippery conditions and both teams are to be congratulated.
Both hookers; Danny Wassell and Tyrell McCullough won their respective player of the match for either team and needed to be good given the limited ball to the teams’ backlines.
Dalby’s Jason Wardrop worked tirelessly in defence whilst Daniel Holmes was again inspirational as was Jacob Whittaker for the Tigers.
A GRADE: Dalby 22 (Jason Wardrop, Chris Wilkes, Corey Blades, Zac Morris tries; Zac Morris 3 goals) defeated Souths 18 (Dwayne Duncan, Tyrell McCullough, Luke Nolan tries; Luke Nolan 3 goals)
RESERVE GRADE: Dalby 28 defeated Souths 16
UNDER 18: Souths 22 defeated Dalby 12
WATCH: TRL Media speaking with winning Dalby Diehards coach, Kerry Carmichael
The conditions at Clive Berghofer Stadium on Saturday night.
Highfields Eagles v Oakey Bears
Highfields kept their excellent form going with a comprehensive win over last start winners Oakey at Kuhls Road on Saturday night.
St George product Charlie Adams scored three tries in Aaron Hooper’s absence whilst the Bainbridge boys scored four tries between them.
The Bears toiled well against a fairly hot team at the moment.
A GRADE: Highfields 56 (Charlie Adams 3, Josh Bainbridge 2, Nick Bainbridge 2, Cooper Bowyer, Sean Hamel, Luke Hile tries; Jarrod Lee 8 goals) defeated Oakey 0
RESERVE GRADE: Highfields 34 defeated Oakey 22
UNDER 18: Highfields 62 defeated Oakey 12
Warwick Cowboys v Gatton Hawks
The Warwick Cowboys returned to the winners list with a gutsy win against Gatton at Father Ranger Oval.
Warwick were down 10-0 after 15 minutes until Dylan Galloway and Matt Marshall scored for the Cowboys to level the scores, making it 10-10 at halftime.
Gatton started the second half better than their rivals when in-form fullback Billy Jackwitz scored for the Hawks.
The game was a real arm wrestle.
Joe Fuimaono grabbed a four-pointer for the Cowboys to get them within two points after 70 minutes, trailing 16-14.
The last 10 minutes was an absolute war of attrition, but Warwick captain Paul Cantwell put the home side in front for the first time in the match when he scored with a couple of minutes remaining.
Warwick hung on to win 20-16.
A GRADE: Warwick 20 (Dylan Galloway, Matt Marshall, Joe Fuimaono, Pail Cantwell tries; Dan Watson 2 goals) defeated Gatton 16 (Callum Woolacott, Shannon Hicks, Billy Jackwitz tries; Callum Woolacott 2 goals)
RESERVE GRADE: Gatton 46 defeated Warwick 20
UNDER 18: Warwick 52 defeated Gatton 16
SECOND DIVISION Gatton 46 defeated Warwick 10
Pittsworth Danes v Valleys Roosters
The first clash of two undefeated sides in the Toowoomba Rugby League season.
Valleys travelled to the Danes’ territory and started the game very well with two quick tries and before Pittsworth knew it, it was 12-0 to the Roosters after 7 minutes.
To contribute to the Danes’ start, they did not touch the ball until the 10th minute.
The game did settle down as Pittsworth eventually got possession.
Once the Danes looked threatening, enter Valleys fullback Dylan Chown in the 29th minute.
Featured as the Toowoomba Sports Club play of the day, Pittsworth kicked into the Roosters in-goal area for Chown to regather the ball and run through the entire Danes side and score a length of the try.
This play demoralised the Danes and they never recovered with the halftime score at 18-0.
In the second half, the Roosters were camped for a long time on their own try line and Kabu Kofe finally crossed for Pittsworth in the 63rd minute, but it was too little, too late as Valleys upset the defending premiers to stamp their mark on the TRL competition.
Rodgers and Seymour played very well for Valleys as did Nathan Simpson and Dylan Chown.
Pittsworth had no answers for the Valleys’ attack and defence.
They did show glimpses of the reason they won last year’s premiership.
They will need to improve and quickly as they play Dalby next round, whereas Valleys will be confident going into next week’s clash against Highfields.
Brett Seymour was excellent and showed he was not just there to direct traffic but also lead the way with defence, earning him the Hutchies player of the match.
A GRADE: Valleys 30 (Steven Rodgers 2, Dylan Chown 2, Nathan Simpson tries; Emmanuel Cerei 5 goals) defeated Pittsworth 4 (Kabu Kofe try)
RESERVE GRADE: Valleys 34 defeated Pittsworth 18
UNDER 18: Valleys 44 defeated Pittsworth 20
WATCH: TRL Media speaking with Valleys Roosters coach Brett Seymour
In the other TRL Under 18 match, the South Burnett Eagles backed up last week’s winning form, recording a 46-8 win over Goondiwindi.
After seven rounds of competition, these are how the competition ladders stand:
A GRADE: Dalby 12, Valleys 12, Pittsworth 10, Highfields 10, Gatton 6, Wattles 6, Warwick 6, Brothers 4, Souths 2, Oakey 2, Goondiwindi 0
RESERVE GRADE: Gatton 12, Dalby 10, Valleys 9, Highfields 9, Wattles 8, Brothers 8, Souths 6, Warwick 4, Pittsworth 2, Goondiwindi 2, Oakey 0
UNDER 18: Dalby 12, Valleys 12, Souths 12, Warwick 10, South Burnett 8, Highfields 8, Goondiwindi 8, Brothers 5, Gatton 4, Pittsworth 3, Wattles 2, Oakey 0
SECOND DIVISION: Gatton 8, Warwick 6, Pittsworth 4, Brothers 2, Dalby 2, Valleys 0
For full results, ladders and upcoming fixtures of the Toowoomba Rugby League, visit the TRL website.
