Cottesloe have bagged their first win of the 2012 Pindan Premier Grade season in a Friday night hit out under lights at Tompkins Park, accounting for Palmyra 21-11.

With an 8-all score line leading into the second half the game was anyone’s and it was Cottesloe who made the most of their opportunities.

Cottesloe coach Ian Fowler was pleased with the result and said the team had shown significant improvement from their round one performance.

“It was a bit scrappy but we’re pretty happy with the win and we certainly played a lot better than we did last week and with a lot more discipline,” said Fowler.

“Our contest at the breakdown was a lot better than last week and all in all I thought it was pretty good.

“It’s still a work in progress but an improvement nonetheless and that’s what we’re after.”

After registering a hard fought two point win in the opening round Palmyra Coach Dave Ball said he was disappointed with the outcome this week but not dismayed, and believed his side had made improvements on last season where they finished just outside the top four.

“The passages of play and the phases we streamed together and when we actually kept hold of the ball for a number of phases we showed we’d be a threat to any side. We just have to do it more often,” Ball said.

It wasn’t an ideal start for Palmyra with playmaker Trent Vatsalis putting too much boot to ball and kicking it out of play from the kick off.

Cottesloe took it into Palmyra territory but a ball handling error saw it returned to the home side and discipline got the better of the Gulls. Palmyra were rewarded the penalty goal opportunity and Vatsalis slotted it to give them the 3-0 lead.

The Gulls regathered and again threatened the defensive line before being rewarded with a shot at goal which Sam Heinemann nailed when Palmyra were penalised for a ruck infringement.

Palmyra began to take control of the game and 20 minutes into the first half they were able to send scrumhalf Nick Corkin flying over for a try following a solid drive at the line by Homiora Tioki. Vatsalis couldn’t add the extra two points to extend his side’s lead to seven.

The home side didn’t hold the lead for long with big lock Michael Scott scoring the first of his two tries when he used his body to barrel through the Pally defence.

Cottesloe found themselves down to 14 with five minutes to play before the half time break after Stefan Cooper was shown a yellow card after an incident in the scrum. More frustration at the scrum saw both sides lose a player 10 minutes after the restart.

A penalty goal to Cott gave them a slender three point lead which soon was extended to 10 when Scott was again too strong for the Palmyra defence and barged over the try line next to the posts. Replacement flyhalf Sean Martin converted the easy shot to give Cott an advantage they’d take to the final whistle.

In the other Friday night fixture Wanneroo pipped Associates at Allen Park to maintain their perfect start to the 2012 season with a thrilling 36-34 result.

The match ebbed and flowed with neither side able to get a significant break as both scored four tries and four penalty goals. The difference on the score board came in the form of conversions, the Roo Dogs nailing two of their four while Soaks could manage just one.

In other matches Nedlands reinforced their championship credentials as they made it two from two with a close fought win over Rockingham 17-13. Reigning Premiers University bounced back from their opening round defeat to get over the top of Perth Bayswater 25-20, while Wests Subiaco’s visit to Hartfield ended in a commanding 37-10 win over Kalamunda.

Round 2
PINDAN Premier Grade: Nedlands 17 bt Rockingham 13, Wanneroo 36 bt Associates 34, Cottesloe 21 bt Palmyra 11, Wests Subiaco 37 bt Kalamunda 10, UWA 25 bt Perth Bayswater 20.

Reserve Grade: Nedlands 39 bt Rockingham 0, Associates 36 bt Wanneroo 29, Cottesloe 22 bt Palmyra 17, Wests Subiaco 43 bt Kalamunda 5, UWA 27 bt Perth Bayswater 5.

3rd Grade Gold: Nedlands 19 bt Rockingham 5, Associates 31 bt Wanneroo 22, Palmyra 15 bt Cottesloe 0, Kalamunda 32 bt Wests Subiaco 26, UWA 46 bt Perth Bayswater 25.

4th Grade Gold: Nedlands 39 bt Rockingham 14, Wanneroo 17 bt Associates 5, Cottesloe 32 bt Palmyra 5, Wests Subiaco 26 bt Kalamunda 0, UWA 24 bt Perth Bayswater 10.

3rd Grade Black: Mandurah 45 bt UWA 7, Curtin Uni 35 bt Bunbury Barbarians 0, Joondalup 17 bt Southern Lions 13, ARKS 22 bt Swan Suburbs 13.

4th Grade Black: Mandurah 35 bt UWA 0, Curtin Uni 28 bt Bunbury Barbarians 0, Joondalup 55 bt Southern Lions 7, ARKS 21 bt Swan Suburbs 5.

Under 20's: Associates 27 bt Wanneroo 0, Cottesloe 18 bt Palmyra 14, Kalamunda 56 bt UWA Green 5, UWA 27 bt Perth Bayswater 24.

Under 18's: Joondalup 15 bt Southern Lions 13, Wanneroo 56 bt Mandurah 3, Wests Subiaco 53 bt Wanneroo White 0, UWA 19 bt Perth Bayswater 10.

4th Grade Blue: Associates 22 bt Wests Subiaco 21, Cottesloe 99 bt Palmyra 0, Southern Lions 36 bt Joondalup 11, Nedlands 57 bt Curtin Uni 0.

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