Paly -vs- Neddies Match Preview

[Darren]

The KWIK Premier Grade’s two stingiest defences meet this weekend when table topping Nedlands travel to Tompkins Park to take on third placed Palmyra on Saturday.

Both sides have conceded just 97 points so far this season and defense will figure prominently in both coaches thinking this weekend.

“The old saying goes that defense wins games and that’s definitely something I believe in,” said Nedlands Coach Tony Ball.

“Both ourselves and Paly have had the same number of points scored against us this season so I think it will be a low scoring game and whoever can break through and make the most of their opportunities on attack should win.”

So far this year Nedlands have done just that and the reigning Premiers have scored a competition leading 274 points to go along with their sterling defense.

Palmyra have scored just 124 in comparison but can take heart from the fact that Rockingham needed only 19 to beat the Royal Blues two weeks ago and in doing so hand them their first defeat of the season.

“We had a bad day in the office against Rockingam,” Ball said.

“We had four yellow cards and a penalty try awarded against us. The boys just didn’t read the referee and ended up getting frustrated and we lost it in the end.

“That game aside I’m very happy with how the season’s gone so far. We’ve had a of couple injuries the last two weeks but the replacements have stepped up and performed well which shows that we’ve got some depth in the squad which is important and good to see.

“The match against Palmyra is going to be tough. It’s a big day at the club and I’m sure they’d love to knock us over in front of all their supporters and the families that will be there this weekend.”

Saturday sees Palmyra hosting their annual family day and festival of rugby and the club’s 1991 Premiership winning team will be in attendance, although the extra motivation is hardly required according to Paly Coach John Taylor.

“You shouldn’t need any extra incentive for a match against Nedlands,” said Taylor.

“They’ve made the semi-finals for something like the last 28 years so obviously they know what they’re about and have a good culture at the club.

“I admire them and the way they just keep going about their business and getting the results. A game against Neddies is always a good barometer of where you are at as a side and it will be interesting to see how we go.”

A win on the weekend would strengthen Palmyra’s position in the top four and put some distance between them and the large mid-table pack but Taylor insists it is much too early to be thinking about finals.

“I’m not overly concerned with ladder position at this stage,” he said.

“I believe that if the process works the end results fall into place. The process seems to be working but there are still eleven rounds to go and the competition this year is really close with everybody knocking off everybody so it’s not something I’ve really thought about to be honest.”

TEAMS (Provisional)

Palmyra
1 J. Savage,
2 F. Smith
3 H. Tioki
4 P. O’ Connor
5 A. Daly
6 A. Koliavu
7 N. Oakley
8 K. Leary

9 D. McClaren
10 R. Hutton
11 M. King
12 H. Marr
13 V. Booiman
14 W. Cameron- Dow
15 J. Alston

Reserves:
16 N. Fatuali’I
17 S. Bowley
18 J. Ball

Nedlands
1 Marlen Walker (c)
2 Mason Pomare
3 Kane Greer
4 Callum Sauer
5 Luke Doherty
6 Ollie Baaisac
7 Tane Edwards
8 Ritchie Naylor

9 Nathan Roberts
10 Mike Botes
11 Warren Black
12 Justin Webster
13 Juan Pretorius
14 Cam Crowley
15 Bryce Penny

Reserves:
16 Toketa Tonga
17 Barry dry
18 Dan Bailey
19 Rob Carter
20 Jaydyn Scorrige
21 Edz Turinui
22 Matt Venter

RugbyWA

[Darren]

A superb second half effort from Nedlands in which they piled on 24 unanswered points saw the reigning Premiers come from behind to beat Palmyra 34 - 21 at Tompkins Park on Saturday.

Neddies showed their class after the break as they bagged five competition points to strengthen their position on top of the ladder while sinking the hearts of the large contingent of Palmyra supporters that turned out for the club's family day.

Paly were well and truly on top in the first half and at the end of 40 minutes held a commanding 21 - 8 lead before an injury to flyhalf Rory Hutton early in the second saw them lose their way on both defence and attack.

“He hurt some tendons in his arm and that was a big loss for us really because he was directing things well,” said Palmyra coach John Taylor.

“Injuries happen though, we had a few out and they had a few out too but I still thought it was a good game of rugby. They're a quality side and I'm happy with our showing.”

Nedlands coach Tony Ball was equally as respectful of Palmyra who had given his side more than a run for their money in the opening stanza.

“At this stage Palmyra are definitely the best team we've faced,” Ball said.

“They're well organised and although they dropped off a bit in the second half that probably comes down to our pressure and the fact that we were able to hold on to the ball more.

“They also seemed to struggle after their 10 came off, it definitely made a big difference.”

Palmyra opened the scoring through the boot of Hutton in the 7th minute but Nedlands hit straight back when Luke Doherty took a quick tap five metres from Paly's try line and caught the defence napping.

Juan Pretorius missed the conversion and minutes later Palmyra crossed for their first try of the game through fullback Johnny Alston who found a gap and ran over in the corner.

Hutton failed to add the extras but added a penalty shortly afterwards after Neddies hooker Mason Pamore infringed in a tackle.

The scoreboard continued to tick over for the home side as Winston Cameron-Dow knocked over a penalty and then Alston crossed for his second try when winger Maia King broke strongly down the touchline before flicking the ball back inside to his fullback who dived over next to the posts.

Hutton resumed the kicking duties and slotted the conversion for what would prove to be Palmyra's last points of the game.

Shortly into the second half Hutton came off clutching his wrist and the rock solid Palmyra defence turned porous.

Winger Cam Crowley crossed first for the Royal Blues after receiving the ball on the wing and running over a couple of Paly defenders. Shortly afterwards Ritchie Naylor added his name to the try scorers list powering over from close range.

Cameron-Dow missed a shot at goal that would have put Palmyra back into the lead and it was the closest the home side would come to scoring for the rest of the game as Pretorius crossed for the bonus point try moments later before flanker Tane Edwards completed the rout just before full time.

“At half time we spoke about getting our hands on the ball and just doing the simple things right,” said Ball.

“We just needed to control the ball more, we couldn't get our hands on the ball and we just let them run at us and they played really well in that first half and were a cut above us.

“We wanted to go out and try and go through the middle first and then send it wide and it worked.”

Despite the loss Palmyra are still in good position to mount a charge as the season progresses and will certainly take confidence from the performance they were able to produce in the opening half against the competition’s best team.

“Nedlands are a quality side and we knew they'd come back hard,” said Taylor.

“Little errors we made let them in really, messing around in our own 22 and a couple of kicks that didn't go out. In the big games you don't want to give away opportunities like that.

“Their passes went to hand and they just executed very professionally in the second half. We tried hard but in the end the difference was probably the mistakes that we made.

“We're not far away from them though, like I said before the game, this would be a good test of where we are and we're not too far away.”

Elsewhere Wanneroo claimed its second big victim in as many weeks with Wests Subiaco going down to the Roo Dogs 36-33 at Kingsway.

While the two sides had occupied very different positions on the ladder Wanneroo has seemingly found their groove and after propping up the ladder earlier in the season are now just three points outside the top four.

Perth Bayswater’s dream run in the 2011 competition has been given a shake as they suffered their second straight defeat, going down 37 - 24 to Associates at Allen Park while Kalamunda kept their season alive edging Rockingham 17 – 15.

University continued their ascent up the ladder and climbed to third on the back of a 42 - 31 victory over a stuttering Cottesloe. The Seagulls now find themselves in unfamiliar territory near the bottom of the pack and need a significant form reversal if they’re to again challenge for the championship this season.

RugbyWA