Blayney Rams' Dylan Marmion scores hat-trick to lead Oilplus Cup win over Molong

Blayney held a narrow, 10-5 lead at the break before Marmion broke the Oilsplus Cup local derby clash wide open, scoring a second-half hat-trick to guide his Rams to a 27-17 victory in freezing conditions at King George Oval.

Marmion's triple followed Ryan Simmons' first-half double, the bonus-point win keeps Blayney on top of the table in Central West Rugby Union's third tier, the Rams hold a three-point buffer ahead of the second-placed Geurie Goats.

Marmion proved how valuable cross-code recruits can be for a small centre like Blayney, he also stars for the Bears in the Group 10 Reserve Grade competition and has been a Western Rams regular through the years as well.

The opening half of Saturday's local derby was an exhibition of brutality as the two sides kept it tight in contact, both stringing together periods of double-digit phase play as they fought for the upper hand early.

Blayney's line cracked first as Molong fullback Michael Mann opened the scoring before Simmons picked up a quick double to first bring the Rams level and then push them in front.

None of the tries were converted, a trend throughout the game as both sides' goalkickers struggled to find their radar. Combined, extras were added after just two of the eight tries scored in the clash.

Marmion crossed first after the break before Molong hit back through Jordan Packham, with Riley White converting the latter to cut the visitors' deficit to just three at 15-12.

The cross-code ace extended that lead to 10 with his second not long after though - Bryce Sutton converting - before Rick Scott's second yellow card and resulting red reduced the hosts to 14, opening the door for the visitors.

Crucially though, the Rams were the next to score as vice-captain Ben Willis linked with Louis Nixon from the back of the scrum, the latter finding Marmion to finish.

Mann scored his second late in the game, although it was little more than a consolation for the Magpies.

"Blayney had most of the possession and we didn't help ourselves by making too many errors and missing a few opportunities," Molong hooker Charlie Cooper said.

"They took their chances, but we had a few blokes out as a well so there's room for us to improve in the back end of the season.

"It'll be interesting to see what happens if we meet them in the finals at some point."

While the Rams are flying high on top of the table with just three games remaining in the regular season, the Magpies slip to fifth following the defeat.

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content: