RUGBY LEAGUE
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WINNING 10 games in a row is cause for any team to celebrate, but on Saturday there was a very big bonus that came with it for the under 11 St Pat’s Blue side.
The 30-6 victory over Bloomfield at Carrington Park which extended their winning streak into double figures happened to come on Group 10 Junior Rugby League grand final day.
While Bloomfield scored the first try of the match after just two minutes, from that point onwards it was the Saints who controlled the decider.
“You played well all year and you deserve it boys,” Pat’s coach Stuart Hope told his players.
“Well done to Bloomfield, you put it to us all year.”
It was five-eighth Liam Wilson that struck an early blow for Bloomfield as he busted through a four-man tackle to score in the right corner. While there was some conjecture as to whether or not his conversion was successful, he was given the nod to make it 6-0.
But Pat’s soon hit back as centre Jia Siakisoni produced a good fend to score in the left corner then converted his own try to lock it up at 6-all.
From the restart Bloomfield were penalised for being in front of the kicker and two tackles later hard-running second rower Cooper Brien charged through the Tigers’ defence to score.
While Bloomfield worked hard in defence, Pat’s spent most of the remainder of the half in an attacking position.
Siakisoni very nearly had his second when halted centimetres short of the line, but from there Pat’s spread the ball to the opposite wing and Jake Toubia capitalised.
His try and conversion five minutes before the break gave Pat’s an 18-6 lead.
In the second half it was more of a struggle as the Tigers tried to work their way back into the contest, but any hope of a comeback was ended five minutes out from the break.
Siakisoni was held up over the line after a quick penalty tap, but Pat’s continued to pressure and found the gap in the Bloomfield defence they were looking for some 40 seconds later. Man of the match Brien scored in the right corner and Denzil Begley converted to make it 24-6.
The win was then iced with just over a minute remaining via a brilliant individual effort from Nathan Barlow.
He made a break of around 40 metres down the right wing and while a covering tackle from Bloomfield halfback Lachlan O’Dea looked to have halted him, a second effort broke his grasp.
Barlow converted his own try to the cheers of his team-mates, Pat’s running out 24-point winners.
ST PAT’S BLUE 30 (Cooper Brien 2, Jake Toubia, Jia Siakisoni, Nathan Barlow tries; Nathan Barlow, Jia Siakisoni, Jake Toubia, Cooper Brien, Denzil Begley goals) defeated BLOOMFIELD 6 (Liam Wilson try; Liam Wilson goal)