Round 4 Match Review – QRL Hostplus Cup vs Burleigh Bears

Tweed Seagulls RLFC, proudly backed by the Seagulls Club, played out an 80-minute thriller but fell to the Burleigh Bears 14-12 in the dying stages at the Piggabeen Sports Complex, Piggabeen.

A Lindon McGrady error provided the Bears with an early opportunity to get on the board but the Seagulls defence held firm – a theme that held true for much of the match.

Tweed couldn’t do the same defending back-to-back sets shortly after, though. After forcing a repeat set, Burleigh found success down their left edge through Ken Maumalo. The new Gold Coast Titans winger found himself on the end of some quick Keano Kini hands to open the scoring in the 7th minute.

A relieving penalty soon allowed the Seagulls to search for their own success down the edges. Left and right, Tweed threatened to no avail. Treymain Spry continued his impressive start to the season and caused havoc down the right edge, breaking tackles to stress the line before the Seagulls looked left. The Bears defence held up as the Seagulls again forced them to work out from deep in their own end. As the game worked into an arm wrestle, Tweed gained the ascendency and played with the more favourable field position.

Both sides opted for early kicks in an attempt to gain a minor advantage. Still, the game waited for an error or a game-breaking moment as both sides displayed patience and willingness to get into a grind.

As a Burleigh error eventually came, Tweed pounced. Tom Weaver took the line on down the left edge before the right produced points. A Toby Sexton floater hit Ioane Seiuli on the chest for the Seagulls to level the scores in the 22nd minute.

Tweed managed to extend their lead on their next visit to the Burleigh line through Kaleb Ngamanu. The young winger had just entered the field as Brent Woolf walked off and Ryland Jacobs moved into dummy half.

Similar to the first, Tweed shifted the ball one way before returning to the edge from which they came. Sexton laid Klese Haas to the right post, took the ball back through Daniel Ross’ middle service, and found Weaver out wide who sent Ngamanu over in the corner untouched.

Tweed’s dominance after conceding early translated into a 10-6 halftime lead; just reward for the work they did through the middle and questions asked in good ball.

The Seagulls spent a lengthy period defending their own line to start the second half. Two errors provided Burleigh with a chance to start the second half in the same way they did the first. However, Tweed’s edges looked comfortable in defence. Up fast and holding their line, the Bears couldn’t find a way around the home side.

It took a long-range try from Guy Hamilton who ended up with the ball following a Weaver grubber for the Bears to score.

The points gave the Bears a lift as the territory battle took a turn. Tweed worked up the field and kicked from a strong position for much of the first half but Burleigh played with the field position throughout the early stages of the second.

It wasn’t long before Tweed worked their way back into the grind, though. Sexton circled Burleigh’s left corner as the spot he wanted to end a set if it wasn’t in points. Forcing the visitors to work from deep out of their own end, the Seagulls started to regain control.

Tweed’s left edge looked the most likely on good ball visits throughout the second half. Lee Turner twice poked his head through on the end of a Weaver pass. But the right edge created the opportunity that could have handed Tweed the lead. Spry’s line break over halfway and flick out the back sent Seiuli down the edge, but with a Bears defender hanging off him, the Tweed winger lost possession as he reached out for the line in the corner.

A massive Luke Burton shot on Maumalo forced a knock-on that soon allowed Sexton to level the scores with a penalty goal late in the piece.

But with the Bears surging up the field as time expired, a high tackle presented Tom Steadman with a chance to win it on the siren. His kick split the posts with the clock reading 80:00 for the Bears to get home 14-12.

Key Takeaways

The Seagulls are an 80-minute threat out of dummy half. With Brent Woolf once again part of the 17 and following a big preseason for Ryland Jacobs, coach Dave Penna isn’t short of options. Woolf is a workhorse through the middle. His craft from behind the ruck and deception when providing service from first receiver is an important element to Tweed’s attack early. Jacobs’ speed and footwork has the potential to cause havoc around tiring middle forwards either side of halftime, too.

Penna has talked about getting his best players on the field as often as possible and finding the best ways to use them, and the approach of carrying a winger on the bench and moving another into dummy half is one to keep an eye on in the coming weeks.

Coach’s Comments

The Seagulls worked hard to grind the Bears down but conceded an unlucky try in the second half before Tom Steadman kicked the winner in the 80th minute.

“The boys worked really hard on staying in the grind,” Penna said after the match.

“It was a tough way to lose. Hard to take.”

One positive at the end of it is the season debut for Ryan James. The 168-game NRL veteran played in his first game and will be an important piece moving forward.

“Ryan brings a lot of experience to our side. It’s great to have him in the team,” said Penna.

 

Written by Rugby League Writers for Tweed Seagulls Media

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