ORANGE CYMS stretched its unbeaten run throughout the opening round of the Group 10 season to six weeks on Sunday with a 34-16 win over the Blayney Bears at King George Oval.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Aside from a 20-18 loss to Oberon in round one - a game that was followed by a round two bye - CYMS haven’t tasted defeat this season, with captain-coach Mick Sullivan rapt with his side’s comfortable 18-point victory over the Bears, a team entrenched in the premiership’s finals race.
Sullivan said it’s positive signs for a team still finding its feet combinations wise, with gun hooker Sam Hill set to spend an extended period on the sidelines with stress fractures in his feet while veteran five-eighth James Wynne is still plagued by a troublesome hamstring.
“It’s hard, we’re winning but the combinations we’ve got haven’t had a lot of time to work because they’ve changed each week,” Sullivan said.
“Brock (McGarity) is doing well in the backrow for us, out of position, and guys like Matty Morris, Macca (Ben McAlpine), they’re all going well ... I thought Larsen (Marabe) was great as well. We really missed him last weekend.”
Blayney started the better of the two sides, scoring twice through Ryan Oborn and then hair-Bear Deryne McKenzie, Josh Rainbow landed just one of the conversions to gift the hosts a 10-0 lead.
But CYMS soon hit back.
Running into a stiff wind throughout the opening 40 minutes, Jerome Harrison scored in his comeback from injury before McAlpine and McGarity both crossed for four-pointers in the opening period.
McAlpine’s prodigious right boot landed two of the three conversion attempts to give the premiers the lead.
They never looked back.
Aside from a try Sullivan labelled “fortuitous” from Bears replacement Tim Turdgett, CYMS’ line was never breached in the second half while the green and golds raced in tries to Marabe, Semisi Katoa and McAlpine’s second to complete the win in enemy territory.
“We were running into a big head wind there in that first half ... to go from 10-nil down to up 16-10 was pretty pleasing,” Sullivan added.
They’ll need to improve in the coming weeks though.
CYMS play Bathurst St Pat’s and Oberon in the coming fortnight, with St Pat’s surprising the previously undefeated Tigers 28-24.
Oberon still leads the competition on 14 points, but CYMS (13) and St Pat’s (12) are hot on their tails.
“I think that’s fairly fortuitous for us,” Sullivan said on the Oberon loss.
“St Pat’s are big side. I thought they’d get Oberon but not in that way ... it’s a big two weeks for us with St Pat’s and then the return Oberon game. We can’t afford to drop either game.”
ORANGE CYMS 34 (Ben McAlpine 2, Larson Marabe, Semisi Katoa, Brock McGarity, Jerome Harrison tries; Ben McAlpine 5 goals) def BLAYNEY BEARS 16 (Deryne McKenzie, Ryan Oborn, Tim Trudgett tries; Josh Rainbow 2 goals)